Ex-militants Protest Non-inclusion in Pipeline Surveillance Recruitment  

Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa

Members of the Tantita Security Service owned by Commander Government Ekpemupolo a.k.a Tompolo on Tuesday, averted a mild protest by some ex-militants in Bayelsa State over their non-inclusion in the ongoing execution of the N4 billion crude oil pipeline Surveillance contract awarded by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

The demonstrators, numbering over a hundred, had on Tuesday disrupted vehicular traffic along the Imiringi road leading to the residence of the State Coordinator of Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited in Bayelsa State, Great Joshua MacIver,

They were protesting against alleged non-inclusion in the process of monitoring and stopping the illegal bunkering and pipeline vandalisation in the state.

According to the protesters identified as members of the second and third phase beneficiaries of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), there was a need for inclusion in the surveillance contract.

Addressing the aggrieved ex-militants, Mr. Timi-Igoli Timi, the Chief of Staff to the State Coordinator of Tantita Security Services Nig, Ltd, (Bayelsa State Operations), Joshua MacIver, assured then that the recruitment process into the crude oil pipeline surveillance job was still on going.

He called on the them to always exercise patience, reiterating that the recruitment exercise was an all-inclusive one aimed at capturing all relevant stakeholders in the various catchment areas across the state.

He pointed out that the recruitment exercise would not only capture the second and third phase Amnesty beneficiaries, but also accommodate Persons Living with Disabilities.

Igoli also admonished the protesters and urged them to always seek proper information before embarking on a protest action, describing their protest as ill-conceived and lacking in proper communication.

He reiterated that all stakeholders have already been mapped out for different time frames and would all be attended to by the end of October, 2022.

The Tompolo-owned Tantita Security Services led by its Bayelsa State Coordinator, Great Joshua MacIver, had in the last few weeks embarked on consultation and monitoring visits to various communities in the state, including Ikebiri1,2 and 3, Ikenghebiri, Ondewari, Okpotuwari, Ombugbene in Southern Ijaw Local Government area and Aleibiri and Tuomo communities in Ekeremor local government area of the state.