•Greenland militants are mischief makers- Vincent Oyibode, Urhobo youth leader
•Why we struck, more attacks coming – “Gen” Aldo Agbalaja
•Oghior community demands N855 compensation from NPDC

Emma Amaize, Regional Editor, South-South

IT was the first time in the Niger Delta region that a community and youth leaders of an ethnic nationality were seriously at daggers drawn with a militant over a pipeline attack in their area.

Militants

While the Oghior community in Udu local government area of Delta state and Urhobo Youth Leaders Association, UYLA, tenaciously maintained that last Sunday, November 27 pipeline fire outbreak in the community followed an oil spillage caused by “total negligence on the part of the Nigeria National Petroleum Development Company, NPDC,” a militant group, Niger Delta Greenland Mandate Justice, NDGJM, claimed responsibility for the detonation.

We did it – Greenland militants

The militant group in a statement by “Gen” Aldo Agbalaja, on Monday, November 28, 24 hours after the pipeline was damaged, asserted: “In the last few weeks, we have been silent and observing. The period of silence was definitely not of inactivity; as a matter of fact, it was rather a strategy session, the fruits of which shall start showing up in the coming days.”

“However, to register our presence and jolt those probably slipping into delusion back to reality, the Akuma Strike Force Team at about 04.00 hour today, November 27, brought down the 42 inch delivery line operated by NPDC/ND WESTERN in Otu-Jeremi.

“The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate has also observed the calculated psychological attack recently initiated by the Nigerian security forces against our people, believing that by pursuing and arresting our people the struggle will be defeated and our resolve would be quelled. This will not work because what motivates us is stronger than the Nigerian kind of patriotism. Once again, we proclaim that we shall fight till the last man alive.

“It has also come to the attention of the high command of the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate that some impostors have now started a move to hoodwink the federal government into believing that they have what it takes to end this campaign that we have sworn to stay committed to. These conmen, grandstanding and parading themselves as the ‘lords of Warri,’ have forgotten that this campaign goes well beyond their purview or grasp.

“Our advice goes to the federal government is to be wary of who they give attention to in the desperation to get the oil from our soil to flow unhindered. Be wary of these political jobbers, whose stock in trade has always been using the struggle to profiteer.

“We have severally indicated how to end this and definitely not through political jobbers and conflict merchants. If and when we have reasons to trust anybody to hold discussions with, we shall through this same medium, announce the process and the persons. This is a warning for the wise,” it said.

You lied- Urhobo youth leaders

But, the Urhobo Youth Leaders Association, speaking through its secretary, Mr. Vincent Oyibode, debunked the claim. It unambiguously stated: “No militant group can claim responsibility for what happened, there was an oil spillage in Oghior community since September and NPDC neglected cleanup of the area since it was reported, the result is what just happened.”

“If you go to the community, you will discover that aquatic life has been destroyed, the stream, which is the main source of economic activity of the people, had been polluted. The fire outbreak is right on Oghior –Otor Udu traditional road in Oghior, host to OML 34 and 65, Abura field, Nigeria Gas Plant and Otorogun Gas Plant,” Oyibode added.

Clearly angry at the impertinence of the militant group, he  “Those militants are mischief makers, Greenland  Justice does not represent any interest, we, the Urhobo Youth Leaders Association believe in negotiation and the 16-point demand by the Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF,” UYLA said in a statement by the secretary general.”

His words: “They are faceless criminals, who are they, where are their communities, they should show their identities if they are really fighting for Niger Delta. They claim to know what they do not know.”

Oyibode said if there was any sabotage, pipeline repair contractors would not be ruled out because they connive with criminals to blow up pipelines in other to secure more contracts, but for the purpose of claiming responsibility for attacks and injecting fear into people,  Greenland militant group should look for something else, and not the Oghior fire outbreak

Community disowns militants

President General of the community, Hon Wisdom Ghaghara, in a letter to the state governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, demanding compensation of N855 million from NPDC for damage, said: “We sent to inform you of the pipeline fire outbreak in our community. This incidence occurred on Sunday, November 27, 2016.”

“The fire outbreak which occurred was as a result of total negligence on the part of Nigeria National Petroleum Development Company, NPDC. On 19th September, 2016, the community noticed a leakage of the pipe that flow into the stream, which is our major place for fishing and other economic activities with which we feed on.

“As law abiding citizens, the community executives quickly alerted the management of the company, NPDC, to avoid more harm because we already noticed fishes and other aquatic animals were floating dead all over the stream, but NPDC blatantly refused to act accordingly.

“We wrote several letters on the issue telling them to put machinery in place to stop the spread of the spill and to avoid further degradation of the environment/ecosystem and its attendant negative effects on the community.

“In those letters, we urged them to immediately do the clean up and send relief materials to the community, but they ignored. They only came last week, precisely on Wednesday, 23rd November, to carry out the Joint Investigation Visit, JIV, led by one Thompson from NPDC to ascertain the cause of the spill and they saw with their eyes the extent of damage already caused,” he said.

The community added: “After that, they left without any measure put in place to stop the incidence of an imminent fire outbreak, or efforts towards the immediate clean up. Now this incidence has happened, we humbly implore you to come and see things yourself on the devastating effects of the situation.”

Aghaghara confirmed there was tension in the community over the matter, as the entire landmass, streams, swamps and ecosystem were destroyed, saying: “This may further result to outbreak of diseases/epidemics in the community. Hunger and starvation are already in the increase, these are as a result of absolute negligence of NPDC.”

The people urged the governor to intervene to save them from the negative effects and also called on NPDC to send relief materials to them to cushion the excruciating effects of the spill.