By Esther Onyegbula

THE President of Chukan Security Solutions Ltd, Abuja, Mazi Ukachukwu Kanu who operates the anti-vandalization group protecting pipelines against vandalism along Lagos, Ibadan axis recently spoke on the problems confronting the group, prospects and the way forward. Excerpts:

“One proverb says that if you want to know what happens in the kingdom of the dead, you should ask Mr. Rabbit because Mr. Rabbit made holes in the ground and lives with the dead under the earth. In other words, any bird that flies over the NNPC oil pipelines has colours which must be traced before we can know its colours.
We have 120 members throughout the federation including some retired security personnel and we move about in our cars apart from keeping watch on pipelines using foot patrol and speed boats.

We cover popular areas in the Lagos Island where the pipelines passing through coastal areas including the SBM areas, sea-port, the Nigeria coastal water areas and the land territories in Lagos where pipelines were buried. Since the NNPC engaged us, vandals have attacked our members on the sea several times and destroyed our fishing boats (50 of them were destroyed).

Many of our members sustained several injuries and were hospitalized at different periods. Moreover, some corrupt policemen are threatening our lives and helping the vandals.  We sent letters for our monetary demands and request for compensation to the NNPC but we are yet to receive any positive response.

Before our engagement, vandalism was very rampant. Vandals were siphoning oil products worth billions of naira everyday. The NNPC Senior Staff invited our group at their Area Office in Mosimi Shagamu for top secret security meetings, alongside the Sector Commander in charge of the monitoring team set-up by the Inspector General of Police on pipelines vandalism.

During our meetings, the seven (7) senior staff of NNPC complained that they are losing 2.5 million litres of fuel and AGO every week at the area while the government security agents posted to the place are helpless. On that note, the NNPC senior staff introduced our group to the sector commander and further told him that we would work with him to assist him fight vandalism.

*Workers fixing a broken oil pipeline.

Fighting vandalism
As we came on board, we introduced a system which exposed everyone involved in the act. The action discouraged government security agents found aiding and abetting vandalism as a result of which vandalism was reduced and it became less rampant like it used to be at the mentioned areas.

Vandals operate only at mid-night and each time we see them moving for operation, we contact the Area Manager, PPMC, Mosimi Shagamu, the Depot Chief Manager in Apapa and the Sector Commander in-charge of Inspector- General of Police Monitoring Team on pipelines vandalism. Whenever they receive the alerts, they take necessary actions to scare the vandals.

Furthermore, whenever the vandals succeed in their operation, we usually contact the NNPC Head of Maintenance at Mosimi Shagamu to go and see the valves which they used for the operation, remove and repair the pipelines burst by the vandals.

Starting from 2010 till date, we have evidence for 184 alerts sent to NNPC officials and the police by text messages and letters. They received and reacted on time to scare vandals during each operation.
Also, we have evidence of the cordial cooperation we enjoy with the Sector Commander in- charge of the IGP Monitoring Team on pipelines vandalism.   However, I would advise both men of the Civil Defence and the Police involved in pipeline protection to be patriotic.

Secondly, the police authorities should know that only one security organization cannot successfully secure NNPC oil pipelines. It is wrong for some police men to be threatening and discouraging other security groups from engaging or participating in the war against vandalism.   In the year 2007 – 2010, only the police, the NNPC local security, including the mobile police were deployed to protect pipelines but they could not properly secure NNPC oil pipelines and that is the main reason why the NNPC invited our group to assist.

Immediately we came on board, the vandalism reduced. We cannot fail to state that the NNPC has the worst local security men at the Western part of the country. Many of them are foreign nationals from Niger, Chad, Ghana, Benin etc and have been implicated in vandalism and siphoning the oil products worth millions of naira.

Securing the oil pipelines
Although in the Nigerian Police, there are many fine officers who are God- fearing, who can help secure the oil pipelines very well, yet we discovered that the majority of those sent to protect the pipelines, engage in sharp practices to enrich themselves as soon as possible. Recent changes made by NNPC reduced vandalism only for one year.

Starting from March 2012 to December, 2013, the officers posted to guard pipelines worked hard. Each time we sent alerts to them, they responded and scared the vandals away by shooting in the air to prevent their operation. Vandals are like other gangsters and thieves. Whenever they see lapses, they  embark on operations and sometimes they siphon so much oil product worth billions of naira within one month.

On the vexed issue of the in-volvement of security men and NNPC Officials in pipelines vandalism,I want you to know that an elderly man does not say everything he sees in the garden, just as the palmwine tapper does not say all he sees from the top of the palm tree.

I think    the important thing to know is there are solutions if we can summon the courage as a nation to fight vandalism.
We know how and when to catch the vandals during their operations.  If the NNPC management can see reason to hear us out, we would further take the war against vandalism to another level by introducing the real fight against vandals who are human beings like us.

We acted according to the request of the Managing Director of PPMC. They should compensate and recognize our security organi-zation. The country is too large; there is need for NNPC management to recognize us and let us join hands to fight  vandalism.

We demand for compensation of one billion Naira to cover our expenses and the losses we incurred in working for the NNPC protecting the pipelines along the coastal areas so far.