A broad coalition of Niger Delta stakeholders has firmly rejected growing calls to break up the pipeline security contract awarded to Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, describing any move to tamper with the existing operational framework as premature, dangerous and potentially devastating to the fragile peace that has taken years to build across the region.
The stakeholders, drawn from Niger Delta ex-militants, the Board of Trustees of the Critical Stakeholders Forum and the Foundation for Heritage Advancement and Development in Niger Delta, made their collective position known at a meeting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where they also commended the National Assembly for passing a vote of confidence in Tantita’s operations and the leadership of its principal, High Chief Government Ekpemupolo, widely known as Tompolo.
“What Is Working Should Be Strengthened”
The groups were categorical in their support for the current security architecture, arguing that the operational gains recorded under Tantita’s watch represent exactly the kind of outcome that should be protected rather than restructured in the name of decentralisation.
They recalled the state of the Niger Delta before Tantita’s engagement, a period marked by rampant oil theft, systematic pipeline vandalism, widespread illegal bunkering, deliberate sabotage of oil infrastructure and severe environmental degradation that stripped communities of their livelihoods and poisoned their waterways.
Since the surveillance contract took effect, the stakeholders said, those vices have been reduced to their barest minimum, with improvements recorded across field coordination, local intelligence gathering and operational vigilance. They credited this turnaround to the institutional familiarity, accumulated operational experience and local legitimacy that the current arrangement has built up over time.
“In simple terms, the present structure is working and what is working should be strengthened, not dismantled. Pipeline surveillance in the Niger Delta is not an ordinary contract. It is a national security responsibility tied directly to Nigeria’s economic survival,” the groups said in a joint communique.
They warned that fragmenting the existing framework under the guise of decentralisation would generate operational confusion, encourage damaging rivalry among multiple actors, weaken accountability, erode coordination and efficiency and open security gaps that criminal networks would be swift to exploit.
“To suddenly fragment such a framework in the name of decentralisation would amount to disrupting a system that has already demonstrated effectiveness,” they said, adding that Nigeria’s strategic oil assets are far too critical to be subjected to experiments driven by personal ambition, regional pressure or political bargaining.
Tinubu Commended, 2027 Pledge Extended
The stakeholders also praised President Bola Tinubu for approving the renewal of the contract, saying his decision aligned with the wishes of the overwhelming majority of Niger Delta communities and reflected a proper understanding of the stabilising role that Tantita’s operations have played in the region.
The communique was signed by a wide cross section of regional voices including High Chief Reuben Wilson, BOT Chairman of the Critical Stakeholders Forum; Mr. Ezekiel Akpasibewei of the First Phase Ex-militant Leaders; Chief Francis Waiwei, Executive Director of FHADND; Comrade Nature Dumale Kieghe, BOT Secretary; Prince Emeka Igwe representing Imo State; and Ideye Granvile from Rivers State.
Additional signatories included High Chief Andabafa Opunama from Delta, Darikoro Alfred from Bayelsa, High Chief Niko Sintei from Akwa Ibom, Frankly Duduku from Cross River, Godgift Ayabowei from Bayelsa, Kenneth Ekberi and Chief Oyetakin Senator from Ondo State.
The groups also used the occasion to urge all stakeholders of goodwill to throw their support behind the preservation and strengthening of the current surveillance framework, describing it as essential to the long term peace, security and economic stability of both the Niger Delta and Nigeria as a whole.
In a statement that carried clear political undertones, they assured the president that the Niger Delta region would deliver overwhelming support for his reelection bid in the 2027 presidential election, citing the contract renewal as proof of his responsiveness to the genuine concerns of the region’s people.
“The Niger Delta people are excited to continue plying their trades without the fear of sea pirate attacks and the negative effects of illegal oil bunkering activities in their communities,” they said, framing the contract renewal as a direct investment in the daily safety and economic wellbeing of ordinary Niger Deltans.
