- Urges Buhari To Review Revenue Allocation Act, OMS$40m Pipeline Contract
- Accuses Gov Diri, Udom, Others of “Pocketing Billions of Naira illicitly Monthly”…
- Wants 13% Derivation Funds Paid Directly To Host Oil Communities…
A militant group in the Niger Delta region leveraging upon the #EndSARS protests, has expressed umbrage over what it described as an unacceptable injustice being perpetrated against some HOSTCOM communities in the Niger Delta region over alleged inappropriate award of over $40million pipeline security contracts to one Captain Hosa Wells Okunbor, who is the managing director of Ocean Marine Solutions Company(OMS).
The leadership of the designated militants under the platform of the Reformed Niger Delta Avengers, RNDA, in a statement issued on Sunday said it is intolerable, grossly unbearable and highly unacceptable to continue to award over $40million pipeline security contracts to “one single individual named Captain Hosa Okunbor to the disadvantage of HOSTCOM” and other critical stakeholders in the Niger Delta region with the requisite international and domestic expertise, knowledge, skills and capabilities.
The RNDA further lamented that this critical segment and stakeholders are now left to wallow in denial and unacceptable poverty notwithstanding their sheer competencies, requisite skill-set and capabilities.
The RNDA in its statement by one Johnmark Ezonebi, urged the federal government to urgently revisit the contract, its terms, conditions and related subject matters.
The RNDA disclosed that in sharp contrast with local dynamics and protocols ” the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC went ahead to award pipeline surveillance contract to one individual, Chief Captain Hosa Wells Okunbor, who is the managing director of Ocean Marine Solutions Company that is handling the pipeline surveillance security contract worth over 18. 6 million dollars annually just for OML30, which is TFP pipeline security surveillance contract alone.”
The group which canvassed a review of the designated pipeline security contract to allow for greater transparency, more robust community engagement and more stakeholders inclusion argued that it is unacceptable to place all these deals in the hands of one single individual, stressing that the contracts have been shrouded in great secrecy.
The RNDA added: “Not to talk of the Trans Escravos Warri Kaduna pipeline amounting to over 20. 5 million dollars annually and that of the Bonny Nembe Creek trunk pipeline surveillance job that worth over 2.7 million dollars contract in the creek of Niger Delta. RNDA and HOSTCOM are not benefiting from these billion dollars pipeline surveillance security contract jobs in the hands of one individual and the situation will not be accepted any more in the creek as far as the pipeline surveillance security contract job is concern…
“Therefore, RNDA demands pipeline security surveillance job to accommodate the members of the Reformed Niger Delta Avengers group, who are over 5,000 in the creek and we will no longer allow this to happen any more in the creek or else we will bring down all the pipelines in our creek within the stipulated time of ultimatum…”
Similarly, the group also called for a revisit of a variety of subject matters including the Niger Delta Development Commission(NDDC) crisis, payments to host community over gas flaring funds, provision of world-class infrastructure in the Niger Delta region, review of the current revenue allocation formula, among other subject matters.
While urging President Buhari to address concerns of stakeholders over the crisis raging at the NDDC, the group appealed to the President to take appropriate actions to continue to win the peace, support and love of stakeholders in the Niger Delta region.
The RNDA which also accused the governors of the constituent states of the Niger Delta region of illicitly pocketing billions of naira monthly in the name of FAAC and derivation said funds should be paid to host communities under a new revenue sharing formula that should be put in place.
“Fourthly, the proposed 2021 budget, which appropriated billions of naira to the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, and the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, should be withdrawn and put on hold and the Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs should not be allowed to defend the proposed budget until the substantive board of the NDDC is inaugurated and sworn in by President Muhammadu Buhari.
“We also demand that Senator Godswill Akpabio be mandated to hold a town hall meeting with the traditional rulers, stakeholders and leadership of RNDA militant group in the creek in order to show a genuine intention that the budget proposal will not witness embezzlement and diversion of billions to Akpabio and his cronies’ pockets without any tangible and practical development in the creeks of the region.
“And we also demand immediate take- off and re-opening of the Burutu Seaport by the federal government, which should be included in the 2021 budget, ”, the RNDA stated.
The statement added in parts: “Thirdly, RNDA demands that riverine areas in Niger Delta be connected to the cities with roads and bridges with provisions in the 2021 budget. A road project for instance should connect Warri to Ogulagha, Burutu local government area, which is a host to Forcardos Terminal, producing over one million barrels of crude oil that contribute trillions of dollars to the federal government on daily basis.
“More importantly to the RNDA militant group, we call for an emergency review of the Revenue Allocation Act in other to give proper interpretation of the 13 per cent derivation funds that will not be deposited in the hands of the so- called inhuman wicked corrupt minded Niger Delta governors that have been pocketing the billions of naira on monthly basis from the federation allocation account without getting to the oil producing communities in the creeks of Niger Delta and without any accountability to the long neglected emancipated oil producing communities that are the original owners of the 13 per cent derivation funds , according to section 162 sub section 2 of the 1991 constitution as amended.
“So we demand proper interpretation of this Act by the Attorney General of the Federation as to the chief law officer of the country because the people of the Niger Delta oil producing communities are tired of this perpetual man-made injustice caused by the so -called Niger Delta callous inhuman wicked and corrupt minded governors.
“We also called for a review of the four-point agreement with the Host Communities of Nigeria, HOSTCOM, which was submitted to the federal government by the national chairman, Prince Mike Emuh, and has not been approved up till date. The provisions of the agreement which include 10,000 pipeline surveillance jobs to the oil producing communities through the leadership of HOSTCOM has not been approved…
“Therefore, RNDA demands pipeline security surveillance job to accommodate the members of the Reformed Niger Delta Avengers group, who are over 5,000 in the creek and we will no longer allow this to happen any more in the creek or else we will bring down all the pipelines in our creek within the stipulated time of ultimatum.
“Furthermore, we demand release of the 10 licenses for modular refineries in Niger Delta, which the federal government has not approved up till this moment, yet the Federal Executive Council is approving billions and trillions every week in the presidency through the sales of our crude oil on 1.86 million dollars to 2.2 million dollars barrels on daily basis without any tangible.”
