A group, the Isoko Patriots, has claimed that oil thieves are behind the rising ethnic-based protests against the activities of Tantita, the firm in-charge of securing oil installations in the Niger Delta.
The real agenda of the sponsors of the protests, the group said, is to dismantle the surveillance architecture that has frustrated oil theft operations in the region since 2022.
A statement signed by the group’s Coordinator, Ovie Umuakpo, and the leaders representing all the major clans in the Isoko Nation, the group described the protests as a grand design by crude oil bunkering syndicates in Isoko and neighbouring ethnic nationalities to undermine national economic stability and revert to the dark era of rampant oil theft.
The Isoko Patriots expressed concern that the current agitation for the split or cancellation of Tantita’s surveillance contract was politically motivated and aimed at weakening the existing oil security architecture, which has significantly reduced illegal bunkering activities since its inception in 2022.
“Before Tantita came on board, non-indigenous companies like Eraskorp Nigeria Limited and Ocean Marine Services Limited managed these contracts, and no ethnic-based agitation was ever raised, despite crude oil production falling to as low as 700,000 barrels per day due to massive theft,” the statement read.
The group noted that Tantita’s contract was a “child of necessity” that has yielded tangible results in curbing oil theft and protecting vital infrastructure.
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It also emphasized that Tantita, in a show of good faith and inclusivity, engaged competent Isoko subcontractors to oversee the surveillance of critical pipelines such as OML 26 and OML 60.
“Contrary to the false narratives being peddled, Tantita has carried along all relevant stakeholders and has become one of the largest employers of Isoko youths,” the Isoko Patriots stated, condemning recent calls by what they termed “faceless groups” for the cancellation or fragmentation of the surveillance contract.
The group further questioned the rationale behind opposing a single pipeline surveillance contract when several Isoko individuals are successfully executing oil-related contracts in other ethnic territories, including oilfields outside Isoko land.
“This ethnic agitation is not only hypocritical but also suspicious. Is pipeline surveillance the only contract awarded by the NNPC?
“Why are our sons and daughters not being treated unjustly for operating outside Isoko? This is a case of corruption fighting back,” the group added.
The statement called on security agencies and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to disregard the orchestrated agitations and instead deepen investigations into the activities of the criminal elements disguised as ethnic crusaders.
The Isoko Patriots also called for an urgent expansion of Tantita’s operational scope and advocated for the establishment of special courts to prosecute oil thieves and their sponsors.
“The nation cannot afford to roll back the gains made since Tantita’s engagement. What we need now is consolidation, not sabotage. A winning team deserves applause, not replacement,” the group concluded.
