News

Ijaw Group Tackles OPC, CSO Over Call For Review Of Tompolo’s Surveillance Contract

Published

2 years ago

May 1, 2024

Editor

Group known as Ijaw People’s Development Initiative, IPDI, has strongly condemned calls by Oodua Peoples Congress (Reformed) and Civil Society Coalition for Mandate Protection for calling for a review of Niger Delta Pipeline Surveillance Contract, awarded to Niger Delta ex-agitator, Government Oweizide Ekpemupolo alias Tompolo.

IPDI, in a statement by its national president, Comrade Ozobo Austin said it was “shameful that responsible Oodua Peoples Congress (Reformed) could allow itself to be used by merchants of confusion and blackmailers to demand for a review of Tompolo’s Surveillance Contract in Niger Delta barely a shot while of reviewing the contract.”

The group added: “We are aware that selfish and failed stakeholders who were also biding for the contract were behind verbal attacks against Tompolo and Tantita Security company. It’s only enemies of Niger Delta (sic) could at this time barely a few months of the renew of Tompolo’s Surveillance Contract, calling again for review of such a contract.

“The Oodua Congress and others, in case they forget, should know that the Niger Delta Pipeline Surveillance Contract was initiated by High Chief (Dr) Government Oweizide Ekpemupolo, it was part of the terms agreed upon during the signing of the presidential Amnesty Programme.

“Despite the pipeline security contract being initiated by Tompolo, it was awarded to the Yorubas, Calabars, and Benins from 2009 till 2022, when the Buhari-led administration awarded part of the contract to Tompolo having observed that the activities of oil theft get increasing despite being superintendent by the Navy, NSCDC, Army and non-indigenous contractors.

“In case the Oodua Congress and others are poor students of history, they should know that the federal government revoked the pipeline surveillance from non-indigenous contractors and military because it loses confidence in them. It took the Buhari administration to sort for capable hands for a reasonable period of time before Tompolo was recommended from the security angle. Despite this recommendation, it was still part of the contract that was awarded to Tompolo.

“The bigger part which has to do with the offshore is still in the hands of the Itsekiri monarch. I feel disgusted when people of Yoruba, Itsekiri and Ilaje decide to remain mute over the large portion of the Surveillance Contract their brother is handling and continues to point fingers at Tompolo. This is very unfair and mischievous.

“Let me state unequivocally that the Nigeria crude daily production was far below a 1m barrel per day at the time Tompolo came on board, but today the narrative is no longer the same, we now approximately produce 1.7m barrels per day.

“This was the reason the federal government decided to renew the Tompolo Surveillance Contract. Tompolo has shown capacity, resilience, competence, intelligence and resourcefulness in the fight against oil theft.

“This is a fact why the federal government will allow Tompolo to continue being in charge of the Surveillance Contract for now. The Itsekiri monarch contract is cutting across Ijaw in scope, but no Ijaw has agitated that the contract should be revoked from the Itsekiri monarch.

“I am very disappointed at some unpopular stakeholders using all mediums to incite discord against Tompolo in order to get the contract awarded to them. This is shameful and desperation taken too far.

“Again, it should be stated clearly that the government is not interested about who gets what but deeply interested about who can end oil theft in the country. Till this moment, the federal government is aware that in the whole of Niger Delta there is no one who can do the surveillance job better than Tompolo,, hence all these cheap calls for contract review will end up in a deft ears of the government for now.

“We are aware that these unfounded calls have been sponsored by oil thieves and greedy contractors. Their reason is not far fetched, they want the surveillance contract to be given to the military or inexperienced and incompetent contractor to create a room for them to continue their oil theft business.

“The government is aware of the sinister intention of those calling on president Bola Ahmed Tinubu to review or revoke the Tompolo pipeline surveillance contract.

“The whole gamut of the call to review Tompolo’s Surveillance Contract is being manipulated by corrupt and greedy fellows. To think of it, despite the contract being awarded to Tompolo’s Surveillance Company, it is still being handled by boys, men and women in such areas or tribes where such operations are carried out.

“No foreigner is employed to do the job. All the subcontractors are indigenes of the oil and gas communities in Niger Delta.
It is a known fact the contract can’t accommodate everybody in the whole community, maybe that is what some referred to as marginalisation, I don’t know.

“But what I know is that no community under Tompolo’s Surveillance coverage is marginalised and sidelined.

“Therefore, I advised mischief makers and enemies of progress in Niger Delta to repent from their stock in trade and engage themselves in productive activities, rather than blackmailing and betraying a fellow brother for bread and meat.

“It is part of my appeal to the federal government to ignore and disregard sinister calls of perceived oil thieves to pave the way to continue their business”.

News

‘My Father Discovered Banana Island’ – Ex-BBNaija Star Claims

Published

30 minutes ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

Former Big Brother Naija reality star, Kiddwaya has claimed that his dad, Terry Waya, discovered the famous Banana Island in Lagos.

He made the claim in a recent of the Off The Record podcast.

The host asked: “I heard that your dad discovered Banana Island. Is that correct?”

Kiddwaya replied: “Yeah, I didn’t even know until I heard it during one of my trips.”

Kiddwaya’s dad, Terry Waya is a self-acclaimed billionaire with investments in the real estate, agriculture and hospitality industry.

His public profile was further boosted during and after his son Kiddwaya’s appearance on the Big Brother Naija reality show in 2020.

Watch video here.

News

EFCC Releases Malami After Interrogation, Gives Fresh Appointment For More Questioning

Published

2 hours ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, says his engagement with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, following an invitation by the agency has been “successful.”

Malami, who disclosed this in a post on his X handle on Saturday, said he was released after the interaction and given an appointment for further questioning.

“In line with my undertaking to keep Nigerians updated on my invitation by EFCC, I give glory to Allah for His divine intervention. The engagement was successful and I am eventually released, while on an appointment for further engagement, as the truth relating to the fabricated allegations against me continues to unfold,” he wrote.

The EFCC had earlier invited the former minister over allegations linked to his time in office, though the commission has not publicly disclosed details of the issues under investigation.

Malami previously announced that he would honour the invitation, saying it aligned with his commitment to accountability and transparency.

News

VIDEO: Jonathan Breaks Silence On Guinea-Bissau’s Military Takeover

Published

9 hours ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has broken silence following the recent military takeover in Guinea-Bissau, describing it as a conventional coup, insisting it was “maybe a ceremonial coup” given the strange manner in which it unfolded.

Jonathan, who spoke extensively in an interview with Symfoni posted on YouTube on Friday, said he felt compelled to address the media to thank Nigerians for their concern and to clarify what truly happened while he was in Bissau as head of the West African Elders Forum Election Observation Mission.

“You know, since I left office, I’ve always been scared of talking to the media,” he said. “But in this particular case, I decided to speak… first and foremost, to thank Nigerians for the show of empathy, the encouragement.”

Gunfire erupted around key government buildings in Bissau on Wednesday, with soldiers claiming they had “total control” of the country and followed by curfew, border closures and the detention of top government and security officials.

In another development, Tribune Online reports that ousted President, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, flew to Senegal after the intervention of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

Reacting to the development, Jonathan however suggested the situation defied all known patterns of a coup.

“I wouldn’t call it a coup. It was not a coup. I would just say, for want of a better word, maybe it was a ceremonial coup,” he said. “For two things: It is the president, President Embaló, who announced the coup. Later, the military men came up to address the world that they were in charge of everywhere.”

He continued, “Then Embaló had already announced the coup, which is strange. Not only announcing the coup, but Embaló, while the coup took place, was using his phone and addressing media organisations across the world that he had been arrested.”

The former president, drawing from his experience as a Nigerian and a regional mediator, said the events were unlike anything he had seen.

“I’m a Nigerian close to 70, and I know how they keep heads of state when a coup takes place. Recently, I was a mediator in Mali, and within that period, we had a military coup. The military doesn’t take over governments, and the sitting president that they overthrew would be allowed to be addressing press conferences and announcing that he has been arrested. Why does this happen? Who is fooling whom?”

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Federal Government had earlier condemned the development as “a serious threat to democracy and regional stability,” and confirmed Jonathan’s safe evacuation by a special flight alongside his delegation.

Jonathan used the interview to call on ECOWAS and the African Union to promptly announce results of the election that was underway in Guinea-Bissau before the military disrupted the process.

“They have the results because AU and ECOWAS officials were in all the regions when the results were collated. They cannot change those results. They should tally all those results and announce them. They cannot force the military out. They must announce and let the world know who won that election.”

He stressed that the integrity of elections must be upheld in West Africa, recalling his experience overseeing Côte d’Ivoire’s contentious 2010 presidential poll.

“A similar thing happened in Côte d’Ivoire when I was the Chair of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS,” he said. He narrated how Laurent Gbagbo and Alassane Ouattara went into a second round after neither met the 50% +1 requirement.

“In the second round, Ouattara then got more votes than Gbagbo. And Gbagbo said he was not going, that he won the election,” Jonathan recounted. “But all the observers in the international community said Ouattara won the election. And we in ECOWAS said, well, you are our colleague, but you have to go.”

According to him, his insistence on respecting the will of the people ensured a peaceful transfer of power at the time.

“I stood my ground, and Ouattara was sworn in,” he said.

Jonathan reiterated that Guinea-Bissau’s situation was “disturbing” to anyone who believes in democracy and insisted that respecting election results remains the only path to stability in the region.

Watch video here