Former Niger Delta militant leader and chief executive officer of Tantita Security Services Limited, Government Ekpemupolo, aka Tompolo, has alleged that the Nigerian Navy is aiding and abetting oil theft in the Niger Delta.

He disclosed that naval personnel had severally shot at his men, Department of State Service (DSS) officials, and men of the Nigeria Security and Defence Corps (NSCDC) while performing pipeline surveillance duties.

The shocking revelation is coming amid elation over Nigeria’s increased crude oil output to 1.8 million barrels per day.

He condemned the Navy for allegedly preventing the interception of a vessel allegedly used in oil theft in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, recently, and decried the faceoff between the Navy and Tantita.

Tompolo spoke when the national executive of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), led by their President, Afam Osigwe, made a fact-finding visit to Oporoza, headquarters of Gbaramatu Kingdom in Delta State, on issues surrounding oil theft and problems faced by oil producing communities in the Niger Delta.

Tompolo said the task of protecting oil pipelines made him step on the toes of oil theft barons, appealing to Nigerians, including government security agencies to support President Bola Tinubu’s effort towards improving Nigeria’s economy by ending the crime.

He warned that Nigeria may become an economic wreck if the sponsors of oil theft continue to have their way, and  solicited the support of the NBA, with regards to defending arrested suspects.

Responding, the NBA president stressed the need for all Nigerians to work towards the betterment of the Nigerian economy, calling on legal practitioners in the area, to see how they can work in this regard.

“As Nigerians, our fate are tied together. We have a common interest in seeing that the Nigerian economy works, a common interest in seeing that the commonwealth of Nigeria is protected for the well-being of every person, and all hands must be on deck to ensure that the economic loss we suffer as a result of oil theft, is combatted,” he said. 

“We also call on our colleagues in this community and, indeed, other communities to join hands with the NBA to see in what way, we can contribute in this regard, in getting a better Nigeria.”

He said that the NBA, at their recent National Executive Council meeting, took interest in the issue of oil theft because of its negative impact on Nigeria’s economy, the government’s inability to deliver the dividends of democracy, the impact on foreign reserves and Nigeria’s ability to meet its minimum Oil Producing and Exporting Countries (OPEC) quota.

The Guardian