The Chairman of Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) Central Zone, Iniefe Perekosufa on Friday called on President Bola Tinubu to renew the oil and gas surveillance contract awarded to the Tantita Security Services (TSS).
Speaking at a press conference at the Ijaw House in Yenagoa, Perekosufa noted that the appeal is supported by the satisfactory performance of the firm in the execution of the contract.
He said that the call has become necessary in the light of the recent agitation and coordinated campaign of calumny by certain individuals and their associates.
He alleged that Ebikabowei Victor (popularly known as Boyloaf) and Bibopere Ajube (also known as Shoot-at-Sight) have been calling for the decentralization of the pipeline surveillance contract currently executed by Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited.
According to him, it is important to present the facts to the world and to Tinubu, so that national decisions are guided by truth, history and measurable outcomes.
“Before addressing the present agitation, it is important to recall that the pipeline surveillance contract in the Niger Delta has undergone several operational phases.
“For more than six years, the responsibility for pipeline surveillance was handled almost exclusively by Ocean Marine Solution Limited, a company owned by the late Captain Hosa Okunbo of Edo State,” he said.
Hesaid that Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, was engaged by the federal government towards the end of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, when the country was producing barely around 800,000 barrels of crude oil per day, far below its production capacity.
He described the Tantita’s surveillance contract as one of the positive things inherited and sustained by the Tinubu administration, saying it had stopped the conflicts that led to the decline in oil production.
“The Nigerian economy was under immense pressure. Government revenues were declining, and the country faced the real threat of losing credibility in the global energy market.
“This situation resulted in severe economic hardship and recessionary pressures.
“It was within this context of national emergency that the federal government engaged Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, to replicate the success previously recorded under President Goodluck Jonathan.
“Since Tantita assumed responsibility in 2022, Nigeria has witnessed a dramatic improvement in pipeline security and oil production stability,” he added.
He stated that hundreds of illegal tapping points have been discovered and dismantled while thousands of illegal refining sites have been destroyed.
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“Pipeline vandalism has been significantly reduced. Vessels previously loitering in shallow offshore areas to facilitate oil theft have largely ceased operations due to sustained enforcement actions by Tantita.
“Host communities that were once deeply entangled in illegal oil activities are now actively collaborating with surveillance teams to protect national assets,” he said.
The IYC leader maintained that the foregoing achievements have directly contributed to the recovery of Nigeria’s oil production and the stabilization of national revenue.
“It is for this reason that President Tinubu could confidently state that state governments are no longer struggling to secure loans, as there is now access to steady monthly revenue,” he enthused.
