September 17, (THEWILL) – The controversy surrounding the renewal of the $1.3 billion pipeline surveillance contract took a new turn at the weekend with major ex-militant leaders across the Niger Delta region accusing former militant leader, High Chief Government Ekpemukpolo, also known as Tompolo, as a major kingpin involved in crude oil theft and illegal oil bunkering.
They also insisted that despite the attempt to label other militant leaders as “illegal bunkers”, the Oporoza in Gbaramatu Kingdom in Delta State serve as the headquarters of crude oil theft and illegal bunkering.
The former militant leaders, in an open letter to President Bola Tinubu and signed by former commander Moses Ebipador, threatened to open more can of worms if Tompolo does not desist from desperate campaign of calumny against other ex-militant leaders in his bid to convince the President into renewing his unsuccessful multi-million dollar pipeline surveillance contract, which saw the nations crude oil production and export during the one year of his contract decrease rather than increase.
The ex-militant leaders reminded the President that “Tompolo’s Camp 5 in Oporoza, Gbaramatu Kingdom was raided by personnel from the Nigeria Army following the killing of a Nigeria Army soldier in “Iroko”, who caught them in the act of crude oil theft with a vessel/barge full of illegal crude oil.”
According to the ex-militant leaders, “Prior to the proclamation of Presidential Amnesty in 2009 by late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua GCFR, Oporoza was known as the “anchorage,” the centre of crude oil theft with vessels and barges loading in and out.”
They also claimed that Oporoza had an alleged “Bunkering Union” with Tompolo’s late father (Thomas Osen Ekpemupolo) among the pioneer chairmen of the bunkering union, and other past chairmen including Mr. Matthew Tonlagha, Michael Johnny, among others.
Ebipador insisted that “the President should rotate the Delta State slot to include those who have shown capacity among the Itsekiri ethnic nationality where Escravos Gas-to-Liquids Plants is located since Tompolo has already completed his unsuccessful one-year contract obligation of about $50 million per month, which saw crude oil production and export decrease rather than increase, it’s been a colossal failure and disaster.”
Commander Ebipador stated: “It is widely known across the region that Tompolo never supported the now President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during the 2023 presidential poll, despite the fact that the President went to Oporoza with resources to seek his support, instead, Tompolo miscalculated and used both his resources and that of the now President to work and fund the opposition, what an insult!”
The ex-militant leaders unanimously called on the President to “ignore desperate attempts, lies and fabrications emanating from Tantita Security Services Limited media propaganda against the great and capable people of Ondo State and other leaders in the region, who have displayed nothing short of pure professionalism and has only called for equity and fairness in the decentralisation of the multimillion-dollar pipeline surveillance contract.
“The President should conduct a proper review of the $1.3 billion crude oil pipeline surveillance contract awarded to three individuals, all from Delta State, in accordance with the national and economic security interest of the country and decentralize the contract to include other ex-militant leaders from the different states in the region in order to effectively reduce the menace of crude oil theft and boost oil production.”
