…as house boat owners demand payment, return of vessels

•Firms’ workers seek Tinubu’s intervention

•Court adjourns to April 15 

 By Jimitota Onoyume, Assistant News Editor 

The war against illegal oil bunkering may suffer a setback if the issues involving house boat contractors and the Nigeria Army over alleged unpaid rental services linger for too long.

Workers in affected firms already said the salaries owed them by their companies due to the 26 months unpaid rent allegedly by the Nigerian Army for hired boats had brought unbearable pains and dislocations in their homes.

They enjoined President Bola Tinubu to direct the Army to clear the debt.

The house boat contractors in the Niger Delta also appealed to the President to step in for the bills to be cleared and their boats released.

The workers of Peaches Integrated Services Limited, Godswm Industrial Services Limited and Etucok Integrated Services protested last week after Justice D.S. Pam of Federal High Court, Port Harcourt adjourned to April 15 to hear applications filed by counsel of the various parties in suit No: FHC/PH/CS/115/2025 instituted by the firms against the Attorney General of the Federation; the Chief of Defence Staff; and the Commander, Joint Task Force (JTF), Operation Delta Safe. 

“This matter is hereby adjourned to April for the hearing of the applications,” Justice Pam said after listening to both parties.

The plaintiffs, in their application filed through their counsel, Mbata Chiburoma (Esq ), asked the court to prevail on the defendants to pay the 26 months rent  accruing from the houseboats and their release for maintenance.

The plaintiffs claimed that the boats were hired by the Nigerian Army for their operations  in the Niger Delta waterways  against oil bunkering and related activities, but have been seized and their 26 months’ rent unpaid.

U. J. Chiedozie, counsel to the second and third respondents (the Chief of Defence Staff and the Commander, Joint Task Force (JTF), Operation Delta Safe), countered the plaintiffs’ application with a preliminary objection.

The plaintiffs’ counsel, Chiburoma, responded with a counter-affidavit over the preliminary objection.

Fielding questions later from journalists, the plaintiffs’ counsel said the boats were decaying, adding that they should be released for maintenance while the 26 months rent owed the boat owners for the rental services is paid.

She expressed hope that the court would grant the requests of the plaintiffs.

“What the defendants have to do they have not done. They have not released the boats and they have not released the money for their use. And the boats are getting useless by the day. But I am optimistic that we will get justice “, she said.

The firms’ workers, who staged a peaceful protest at the court premises, said they were traumatized since their employers could not pay their salaries because of the issue.

They enjoined Tinubu to step in to resolve the matter.

Some of the placards they carried read: “Mr President rescue us,” “Our boats are dilapidated due to lack of maintenance”, “We believe in the renewed hope of Mr  President, save our soul,” “National Assembly intervene now, houseboat contractors are not slaves.”

One of the protesters, Dennis Linus Ayaraekpe, said: “We are law-abiding citizens doing honest work in order to earn a living. These are workers that have not been paid. The boats are in a terrible state. Our families are hungry and everybody right now is not happy.

“So, we are pleading with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene in this matter. We are also calling on the Attorney General and the Chief of Defence Staff. We just want our sufferings to end.

“We actually made a series of efforts to get our money and the boats released. We even sat with the former Chief of Defence Staff in order to resolve this matter. But up till now, we are still being owed.”