From Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa
A Niger Delta group, Coalition of Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders for Peace Group, (NDENYLPG) has warned some Ijaw groups allegedly blackmailing the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III over unfounded allegations.
The national coordinator of the group and ex-militant leader, General Osama ( Ijaw Ethnic Nationality) and the national secretary, General Jemine Josiah, an ex-militant leader (Itsekiri Ethnic Nationality)warned the sponsored Ijaw groups to henceforth stop their tissues of lies and cheap blackmail calling for the termination of the oil pipeline contract to the Niger Delta’s revered monarch of international recognition the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III.
The group, after a meeting which had in attendance leaders from Istekiri, Ijaw, Urhobo, Kalabari, Okrika, Egbema, Isoko and Bini, condemned calls for the termination of the contract of Ocean Marine Solutions company that is handling the Trans-Forcados Pipeline (TFP), which the Olu of Warri Kingdom, Ogiame Atuwatse III is the Chairman.
According to the group, Itsekiris owns over 60 per cent of the Trans Forcados Pipeline, and by virtue of that, they are in the best position to protect the pipelines.
‘’We want to warn the so-called disgruntled and jobless fellows of the Niger Delta Stakeholders Forum NDSF to stop calling for the cancellation of the surveillance contract handled by Ocean Marine Solutions Company (OMS). We sternly warn the group and their paymasters to immediately stop this disgusting action.
“We will not allow these evil-minded persons to throw the Niger Delta into a war zone, we will resist them vehemently,’’ the group stated
The coalition while stating that Ocean Marine Solutions company has never breached contract terms and guidelines of the contract agreement entered with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL as being alleged, added that the company had always engaged critical and relevant stakeholders including the host communities in the NNPCL’s Right of Way, RoW,
The group disclosed that it is imperative to let Nigerians and the world know that in the Trans-Escravos recruitment of host communities surveillance guards, both the Ijaw communities and the Itsekiris benefitted.
NDENYLPG condemns in totality the call for the revocation of the Olu of Warri pipeline surveillance contract. We also dismiss as a lie that the highly respected Olu of Warri kingdom was behind a protest organized in Lagos by some group of persons against Government Ekpemupolo also known as Tompolo who is the chairman of Tantita Surveillance Security Company that is handling the major part of the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP) pipeline surveillance contract.
“We want to dismiss this false claim that the Olu of Warri kingdom is responsible for the largest portion of the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP) surveillance contract job.
“We stand here to state categorically that this claim is unfounded. The management of Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited PNL, under the watch of the great Olu of Warri kingdom never owed any of his subcontractors neither or any monthly salary to its surveillance employees