One of the prime leaders of the notorious Niger Delta militants, and founder of the Niger Delta Volunteer Force (NDVF), Alhaji Asari Dokubo, has joined the fray of protesters to the N4.5billion per month oil sector surveillance contract awarded High Chief Government Ekpemupolo, aka, Tompolo.
Tompolo himself is equally among the leaders of the Niger Delta militants that put the same oil sector facilities at risk a decade ago before late President Musa Yardua proclaimed amnesty and brought peace to the region.
Dokuma, like many Nigerians have done, is opposing the decision of the federal government to award Tompolo the N4.5billion monthly contract for pipeline surveillance.
There have been a series of agitations regarding this development. Dokubo, in a viral video, stated that it is greediness for Tompolo to be in charge of pipeline protection for all the ethnic groups in the Niger Delta and he wondered why the Ijaw leader would be in charge of Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers states.
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He assured that he will stop Tompolo from being in charge of the surveillance contract for the 83km pipeline crisscrossing his Kalabari area in Rivers State and he would not allow Tompolo’s armed boys escorted by soldiers to enter the Kalabari area.
Dokubo accused Nigeria’s minister of state for petroleum, Timipre Sylva, of deliberately giving everything to Tompolo to disgrace him [Dokubo] and destabilise the Niger Delta.
“You will take pipeline contract in Delta State your place and then you come to Kalabari to take another one saying you are an Ijaw man because you are the only one that knows how to eat.
“You took the ones that belong to Gbaramatu, Itsekiri, Isoko, Urhobo, Kwale, you took all because you are the only one that knows how to eat. You went to Bayelsa and took everything then you came to take the one in Kalabari.
“If Timipre Sylva gave you because he said he wanted to clip my wings as if he were a god. When Sylva was a member of the House of Assembly, did I clip his wings? I am older than Sylva.
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“When he was a Governor, did I clip his wings? He is now a Minister, did I clip his wings? Sylva said I was becoming too powerful and connived to give pipeline contracts to only Tompolo so that he would destroy what we are doing for the government he serves.
“We are making the government to be stable, but he is destabilising the same government he serves. So he brought Tompolo gathered people saying he would buy guns for them. Let them come. I am not boasting, let soldiers bring the Tompolo boys here.
“I am not talking about Rivers. I am saying they cannot take Kalabari. They can take every other place but I won’t allow them take Kalabari. You are collecting over N4.5bn a month for doing nothing. And people are supporting you. You must leave the 82km pipeline for Kalabari. You can’t take it.
“Take all other place but this one in Kalabari, you can’t take it. Have you heard that since we started fighting, army had entered my camp before? But his own within three days Iroko was destroyed and Camp five was destroyed. Till today, army is still occupying Camp five. Army has never entered any of my camps before. I live inside camp close to army people,” Asari stated.
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Dokubo accusing Tompolo of fighting for the protection of Gbaramatu, and not for the interest of the Ijaw nation. “I can’t compare myself to Tompolo. It is unimaginable that I will condescend to the level of Tompolo. Who is Tompolo? What is his antecedent? Don’t allow me open a can of warm.
“What Ijaw struggle is Tompolo fighting? Is he even involved in Ijaw struggle? He is fighting war with Itsekiri. He has never been in Ijaw struggle. Gbaramatu vs Itsekiri, that is the war he is fighting.
“He is not even involved in Ijaw people who are fighting like Ogbeh Ijaw. Ogbeh Ijaw had been fighting with Ilaje. Has Tompolo gone there before. Is he in Ijaw struggle? Show me one place he has done anything in Ijaw land. So Gbaramatu struggle is Ijaw struggle,” he said
Asari Doukubo asked Tompolo to point at any development he has brought to his area. “Come and see my place and see what is happening there,” he said.
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