IIV to FG: Push for smaller pipeline surveillance contracts, move to revive illegal bunkering

n n

File image

n

An advocacy group, Iwere Indigenous Voice, IIV, has called on the Federal Government to disregard calls for decentralization of pipeline surveillance contract, saying it’s a calculated move by certain actors to gain unfettered access to oil facilities and “revive the lucrative and destructive trade of illegal bunkering under the guise of official protection.”

n

Public Relations Officer, PRO of Iwere Indigenous Voice, IIV, Comr. Abaikpa Isaac Oritsegbubemi, made the declaration in a statement made available to newsmen in Warri, Tuesday April 7.

n

According to Comr. Oritsegbubemi, the proposal to fragment the pipeline security job, isn’t just a policy shift, it is a potential invitation to anarchy.

n

“On the surface, the calls for decentralization are often framed as a quest for regional inclusion and grassroots empowerment. The latest public statements are self-serving campaign. The rhetoric of equity, lies the shadow of personal interest.

n

“One of the core arguments presented to the Presidency is that pipeline security must be treated as a rigorous national security function, not a political patronage system.

n

“The current relative peace in the region is evidence that the existing centralized strategy is working.

n

“By engaging competent, large-scale professional firms, the government has seen; a measurable decline in crude oil theft, increased stability in host communities and heightened operational discipline in notoriously difficult terrains.

n

“Decentralization, as currently proposed, is nothing more than a coded attempt to legitimize disorder,” the IIV statement warned.

n

The group fears that creating “multiple centers of unregulated control” would dismantle the progress made over the last few years.

n

Rather than diluting the current system, the IIV suggests that the path to a more secure Niger Delta lies in reinforcement, not fragmentation.

n

IIV called on President Tinubu administration to; increase the kilometre reach of current successful frameworks, provide more operational resources to firms with proven track records and ensure that accountability remains the primary metric for contract retention.

n

The IIV also urged traditional rulers, youth organizations and community leaders, to look past divisive narratives, arguing that the future of the Niger Delta depends on a collective commitment to lawful economic activity and a rejection of the “get-rich-quick” schemes that have historically fuelled violence in the region.

n

“To disturb the current framework in favor of decentralization would be to risk plunging the region back into an era of economic sabotage and communal strife”, IIV, warned.

n n