Ex-militants Leaders At Loggerhead Over FG $144m Pipeline Protection Contract

The crisis, according to insiders, stems from a contract awarded to a company in which the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III, has an interest, and the renewal of a $144m contract for Tantita Security Services, owned by ex-militant leader Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo.

There are also uncertainties over future renewal and distribution of the contract following the change of guard in the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited. This was after President Bola Tinubu sacked the former Group Chief Executive Officer of the company, Mele Kyari, and appointed a new team.

Tompolo’s contract

Sunday PUNCH gathered that Tompolo’s contract is a continuation of pipeline surveillance, coastal protection, and safeguarding of critical infrastructure in the Niger Delta region awarded to him during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.

According to sources, the NNPCL renewed the contract in October 2024, and Tantita hopes it will be renewed in 2025.

Our correspondents learnt that some ex-militant leaders who believed they were entitled to a share of the Olu of Warri and Tompolo’s contracts had been grumbling and attempting to instigate violence since early 2025.

While some ex-militants accused Tompolo of monopolising the contract despite pipelines running through their native communities, others argued that the Olu of Warri should not have been awarded a contract to protect pipelines in Rivers State.

Insiders told Sunday PUNCH that the crisis might be responsible for recent attacks on pipelines in parts of Rivers State, warning that oil facility vandalism might persist if the division among ex-militants was not resolved.

On February 10, unidentified gunmen attacked security operatives guarding an oil pipeline in Okporowo, Igbu Orlukwor clan of Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State. Amid rising political tension in the state, an explosion occurred on the Trans Niger Pipeline at Aluu community in Emohua LGA on March 16.

The blast resulted in the death of a suspected vandal, and one suspect linked to the incident was arrested a few days later.

Similarly, on March 18, a suspect attempting to sabotage an oil pipeline was arrested in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni LGA. The individual was found in possession of explosives intended to damage a pipeline belonging to Oando.

A human rights lawyer and activist, Deji Adeyanju, raised the alarm over the killing of personnel and officers of Tantita Security Services, calling on security agencies to take immediate and decisive action against both the perpetrators and their sponsors.

“This will not only provide significant economic benefits but also enable us to meet our OPEC quota, which is vital for our national interests,” he said in a statement.

Asari Dokubo’s grouse

A former Niger Delta agitator, now the monarch of Torusarama Piri (Elem Kalabari), Asari Dokubo, had been vocal in his opposition to Tompolo’s pipeline protection contract.

In a three-part video merged into one and seen by Sunday PUNCH, Dokubo accused Tompolo of cornering a contract meant for all ex-militant leaders.

The video, uploaded by a verified X account named ‘Lord of Warri’ on March 24, contained a strong rebuke of Tompolo’s handling of the contract.

Dokubo said, “During the time of President Goodluck Jonathan, he awarded a coastal protection contract to Tompolo. A group, including myself, went to meet the former president, and he said the contract was meant for all of us. We tried to communicate with Tompolo, but he said the contract was exclusively his. We did not want to raise an eyebrow. He was given $144m every year and did that contract for three years. He did not give anybody a dime. We did not do anything; we just left him.

“Now, they are lying to people that the Olu of Warri is the one who has the Rivers State pipeline protection contract. It’s a lie. I am talking about Kalabari, not Rivers State. The 83km pipeline that passes through Kalabari, from my native Kula, Elama, to Cawthorne Channel, was included and given to him. And people say he is not a greedy man. A man that took $144m, which the president said was for all of us, vehemently refused to share. Ateke Tom and Boyloaf are witnesses.