News

Tantita Vows Commitment As Oil Production Increases

Published

9 months ago

November 16, 2024

Stakeholders in the Nigerian oil sector have commended the Nigerian National Petroluem Company Limited (NNPCL), and Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL), a private security company hired to secure the nation’s pipeline, for the recent increase in the nation’s daily oil production.

The commendation followed an announcement made by the management of the NNPCL that the nation’s crude oil production has increased to 1.8 millions barrels per day (1.8m bpd).

The NNPCL also disclosed that gas production has also risen to 7.4 billion standard cubic feet per day (7.4bscfd).

NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), Melle Kyari, who announced this at a press briefing on Thursday, said the feat was achieved in compliance with the mandate of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Kyari congratulated the Production War Room Team that anchored the production recovery process.

“The team has done a great job in driving this project of not just production recovery but also escalating production to expected levels that are in the short and long terms acceptable to our shareholders based on the mandates that we have from the President, the Honourable Minister, and the Board,” Kyari stated.

Giving details of the efforts of the Production War Room, the Chief War Room Coordinator and Senior Business Adviser to the Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr Lawal Musa, said the feat was achieved through the collaborative efforts of Joint Venture and Production Sharing Contract partners, the Office of the National Security Adviser, as well as government and private security agencies.

He said the interventions that led to the recovery of production cut across every segment of the production chain, with security agencies closely monitoring the pipelines.

He stressed that when the Production War Room team was inaugurated on the 25th of June 2024, production was at 1.430 mbpd.

He noted that the team swung into action, culminating in it sustaining the production recovery to 1.7 mbpd in August and hitting the current 1.808 mbpd in November.

“We are confident that with this same momentum and with the active collaboration of all stakeholders, especially on the security front, we can see the possibility of getting to 2MBPD by the end of the year,” he added.

Lately, Tantita has led a relentless war against crude oil theft and pipelines vandalism, pursuing oil thieves out of the nation’s coastal environment as well as seizing and confiscating their equipment.

It was gathered that most of the oil thieves abandoned the nefarious business in the wake of the onslaught and ceaseless heat by the operatives of Tantita security services positioned in the coastal axis of the Niger Delta.

These collaborative efforts with other state actors significantly contributed to the latest rise in the quantum of production of crude and gas resources.

It was gathered that Tantita has initiated clampdown measures to keep the oil thieves at bay with a view to realising 2million bpd of crude oil production by the end of December, in conjuction with other industry stakeholders.

It will be recalled that the Chairman of TSSNL, Chief Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, while speaking during an award bestowed on him by the national leadership of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), promised to ensure that the daily crude oil production output continued to increase and boost the nation’s revenue.

“The only place I have to call my country is Nigeria, so I will do everything within my powers to see that crude oil production increases.”

Reacting to the latest feat, Tompolobsaid he was excited to be part of the success story.

Tompolo, who spoke through his Special Adviser Media and Public Communication, Mr. Paul Bebenimibo, said Tantita was committed to the realisation of 2mbp by December as directed by President Tinubu.

He said, “This milestone, as you know, was achieved in collaboration with NNPCL, security forces and of course, Tantita, which has been at the forefront of oil pipelines protection in the Niger Delta . We are determined to take it to 2mbpd before the year runs out as directed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”

“All the needed machinery has been put in place to ensure that the target is achieved. No effort will be spared to ensure that the economy of Nigeria is galvanised.”

“This will lead to a boost in government’s revenue, thereby making more funds available for the President and his team to run the country effectively. I am assuring you that we are not going to rest on our oars until the target is achieved and even exceeded.”

“New technologies were being deployed to monitor the facilities with a view to ensuring that there won’t be any disruption and that the theft of Nigeria’s commonwealth is halted.”

“So the 1.8mbpd that it has got to, certainly by the end of the year, by God’s grace, we will work to get it to 2mbpd and even exceed. We are working towards that,”

News

BREAKING: Former Customs Comptroller-General, Ahmed Aliyu Mustapha, Is Dead

Published

17 seconds ago

August 28, 2025

Editor

Dr. Ahmed Aliyu Mustapha, who served as Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service from 1999 to 2003, has passed away.

Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, confirmed his death in a statement shared on his social media pages on Thursday.

“Deeply saddened by the passing of Alhaji Ahmed Aliyu Musdafa, former CG of Customs. A man of service, dignity & duty whose legacy will live on. My prayers are with Lamido Adamawa, the Musdafa royal family & all who mourn him. May Allah grant him Aljannah Firdaus,” Fintiri wrote.

Mustapha, an elder brother to the Lamido of Adamawa, Alhaji Dr. Muhammadu Barkindo Aliyu Mustapha, also held the revered traditional title of Sardauna Adamawa.

He joined the NCS as a young cadet and steadily rose through the ranks before his appointment as Comptroller-General in 1999, at the dawn of the Fourth Republic.

His tenure was marked by strengthened anti-smuggling operations, and he played a central role in several national task forces established to combat economic sabotage. In 1988, he received the Ministerial Award for Outstanding Performance, a recognition of his distinguished service.

Mustapha retired from the Service in December 2003, after more than three decades of active duty. In retirement, he remained a respected elder statesman within the Customs community and the Adamawa Emirate, where his counsel and influence continued to be widely sought until his passing.

News

Lagos Man Killed In Fight, Suspect Arrested

Published

2 hours ago

August 28, 2025

Editor

The Lagos State Police Command has arrested a man, Ebuka Adindu, for allegedly stabbing Sodiq Ibrahim to death during a violent confrontation in the Mandillas area of Lagos on Wednesday.

A social media user, @JackFleet, who first raised the alarm on X.com, wrote, “There’s a fracas going on presently in Lagos Island, Mandillas to be precise.

“Two guys were fighting, and it resulted in the death of one of them. Right now, street urchins have taken the law into their hands, stabbing innocent people on the street.”

Reacting to the post, the command’s spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, dismissed the claim that miscreants had taken over the area.

“Your claim of street urchins taking over the street is false. Please do not cause unnecessary panic. DPOs Lion Building and Ebute-Ero are currently on the ground with their men, maintaining the restored peace.

“Also, the suspect has been arrested and is in custody for further necessary actions,” Hundeyin stated in a post on Wednesday.

In a follow-up message to PUNCH Metro on Wednesday, Hundeyin clarified that the incident was not a tribal clash, as was being speculated.

“The Lagos State Police Command hereby wishes to inform the general public that there was no tribal clash or disturbance between any ethnic groups and others inside Balogun Market today.

“There was an incident of a free-for-all between some hoodlums and miscreants in the Balogun Market in the early hours of today at around 11 am.

“During the fight, one Ebuka Adindu from Abia State stabbed one Sodiq Ibrahim from Kogi State to death, and the said Ebuka Adindu in turn stabbed himself on the shoulder and became unconscious.

“He is currently under arrest in the hospital, where he is being treated. Investigation into the matter will be concluded, and he will be prosecuted after he has been discharged from the hospital,” Hundeyin explained.

The police stressed that no innocent lives were lost, no other injuries were recorded, and no goods or property in the market was destroyed.

The statement read, “The Lagos State Police Command wishes to reiterate that the incident is not a tribal clash but purely between miscreants and hoodlums around the Balogun Market. Normalcy has been restored.

“Marketers and the general public on the Island and other parts of Lagos State are encouraged to go about their businesses and other lawful endeavours without fear or apprehension.”

Hundeyin, quoting the state Commissioner of Police, Olohundare Jimoh, called on Lagos State residents “to remain law-abiding and cooperate with the police command to sustain existing peace in the state and not to spread fear in the mind of the public, as Lagos is generally peaceful.”

News

JUST IN: NLC Defies Edo Assembly Resolution, Inaugurates Factional Caretaker Committee

Published

2 hours ago

August 28, 2025

Editor

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has inaugurated Professor Monday Igbafen as Caretaker Committee Chairman of the Edo State Council despite resistance from the state House of Assembly.

This particular faction is supported by the President of the Nigerian Labour Congress, Comrade Joe Ajero, while the Edo State government is in support of the Comrade Bernard Joman Egwakhide-led faction.

The swearing-i was initially slated to take place at the Adams Oshiomhole Labour House in Benin City on Thursday, but the venue was locked and secured, apparently in a bid to block the event from taking place.

This came two days after the state House of Assembly passed a resolution urging the NLC to suspend the inauguration and instead recognize Comrade Bernard Joman Egwakhide as the rightful leader of the union in Edo.

In spite of this, the NLC delegation from the national secretariat, led by Comrade Oluwole Adeleye Sunday, pressed on with their plans.

The group initially moved to the ASUU Secretariat within the Ugbowo campus of the University of Benin, however, after information about that location was leaked, the team quickly relocated.

The inauguration was eventually conducted at an undisclosed venue under tight security.

Speaking during the ceremony, Comrade Oluwole charged the newly constituted faction to restore unity within the state chapter.

“You are to resolve all contending issues and work towards electing new executives,” he said.

In his acceptance remarks, Professor Igbafen pledged to mend divisions within the Edo NLC, assuring stakeholders of a renewed focus on solidarity and internal cohesion.

At NLC Secretariat, operatives of the Nigeria Police Force sealed off the Edo State secretariat of the Nigeria Labour Congress otherwise known as the Adams Oshiomhole Labour House.

Similarly, the main gate of the University of Benin was beefed up with police personnel.

Some suspected thugs were also seen loitering around the secretariat.

A police Armoured Personnel Carrier was deployed to the NLC secretariat,
while heavy security at the Labour House and the UNIBEN main gate were present.

Some NLC leaders from neighbouring states, who were scheduled to attend the inauguration, at the Labour House, expressed regret that they could not access the secretariat.

Speaking, Comrade Augustine Igben from the Maritime Workers Union, said he was embarrassed when he was not allowed entry into the Edo Labour House.

“I felt embarrassed about the whole thing. How can the police barricade the Labour House when there is no war. It is a Labour issue. They should allow Labour to settle the issues themselves.” He said.