Investigative journalist and social activist Fejiro Oliver has rejected what he described as misleading claims and attempts to incite public anger against Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL) and its Managing Director, Osahon Okunbo, over pipeline surveillance contracts in the Niger Delta.
Oliver, who initiated the Guard Your Pipeline and I Guard My Own Movement, said the campaign for the decentralisation of pipeline surveillance contracts was originally driven by demands for fairness and equitable distribution of opportunities among oil-producing communities, rather than ethnic considerations.
He stated this during a press briefing, where he sought to clarify his position amid renewed controversy over the allocation of pipeline surveillance contracts and allegations concerning the amounts paid to contractors.
Oliver said the movement, which began in March, gained national attention and prompted the Federal Government, through the National Assembly, to convene what he described as an emergency town hall meeting to discuss the campaign’s demands.
He said his group, the United Niger Delta Congress, was invited to the meeting and participated despite concerns that the process might not produce meaningful results.
According to him, the central argument of the campaign was that Tantita Security Services and Maton Engineering should not exercise control over contracts worth about N2.1 trillion to protect pipelines passing through communities where other capable local contractors could perform the job.
He said the campaign drew part of its justification from the Petroleum Industry Act, which he argued supported a more equitable approach to opportunities in oil-producing areas.
Oliver also questioned the composition of the contractors initially engaged for the surveillance work, noting that two of the major contractors were associated with Ijaw interests, while PINL was led by Okunbo, whom he described as an Edo man, with the Olu of Warri, an Itsekiri traditional ruler, serving as the company’s chairman.
He said his concern was that communities across the Niger Delta should have a fair opportunity to participate in pipeline surveillance activities, rather than allowing contracts to remain concentrated in the hands of a few interests.
The activist, however, said he was disturbed by recent media reports and social media discussions that, in his view, had distorted the original objectives of the campaign and turned the issue into a confrontation involving ethnic and commercial interests.
He particularly expressed surprise at the position attributed to former militant leader Asari Dokubo, whom he said he respected for his role in the struggle for resource control.
According to Oliver, Dokubo initially supported the call for decentralisation and had publicly praised PINL, its management and the Olu of Warri for their handling of pipeline surveillance responsibilities along the Eastern corridor.
He said Dokubo had, in previous videos, commended PINL and its leadership, including the late Captain Nosa, whom Oliver identified as the company’s founder, for carrying various interests along since the company was awarded the corridor.
Oliver said it was therefore contradictory for a company previously praised for its performance and stakeholder engagement to become the target of claims that could be interpreted as attempts to displace it from the contract.
He also challenged the reported figure of N2.7 trillion allegedly paid to PINL, insisting that he had never quoted that amount as the company’s earnings.
Oliver said the N2.1 trillion figure associated with Tantita and Maton was based on his own calculations of the dollar equivalent of payments to the contractors, adding that he had personally seen contract documents supporting the figures he cited.
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He maintained that PINL’s annual earnings were a little above N250 billion, substantially below the N2.1 trillion figure associated with Tantita and Maton.
The activist said he considered it necessary to correct the figures because inaccurate claims could inflame tensions and undermine the original campaign for a fairer distribution of pipeline surveillance contracts.
“I do not support a hidden agenda of rage-baiting the public with an untrue amount, all for another Ijaw man in the person of Asari to take over the Eastern corridor,” he said.
Oliver said the campaign was not intended to facilitate the transfer of an existing contract from one group to another but to ensure that communities that had yet to benefit directly from pipeline surveillance arrangements were given opportunities.
He listed the Urhobo, Isoko, Ilaje, Opobo, Bakassi, Ibibio, Efik and Ogoni communities among those he believed should be demanding a fair share of the contracts.
He argued that the Eastern corridor, currently handled by PINL under Okunbo and the Olu of Warri, already provides opportunities for Edo and Itsekiri interests and should remain with them.
Oliver also referred to an alleged conversation between Dokubo and Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, concerning the surveillance contract.
He claimed that Dokubo had acknowledged that Tompolo invited him to Oporoza for discussions about the contract but that he declined the invitation.
Oliver urged Dokubo to pursue discussions with his Ijaw kinsmen over the distribution of opportunities within their areas instead of seeking to displace PINL from the Eastern corridor.
The activist said his intervention was intended to protect the integrity of the movement he founded and prevent what he described as attempts by more influential interests to exploit the campaign for their own commercial objectives.
He said the debate should remain focused on fairness, transparency and the inclusion of communities that had not directly benefited from the surveillance arrangements.
“My stand today is not as an investigative journalist, but as a social activist who must set the records straight, affirm my stand and ensure that the struggle I began is not hijacked,” he said.
Oliver added that his experience as an entrepreneur had given him an understanding of the challenges involved in securing contracts, particularly for individuals without strong political connections.
He said such individuals should not lose opportunities because of pressure from more powerful interests or campaigns built on disputed figures.
The controversy comes amid wider debates over the distribution of pipeline surveillance contracts in the Niger Delta, where oil-producing communities have repeatedly demanded greater participation in securing petroleum infrastructure and benefiting from activities linked to oil production.
Oliver maintained that the objective of his campaign remained the equitable distribution of opportunities across the region, insisting that efforts to achieve that goal should not be used to justify the displacement of existing contractors through what he described as misleading claims.
The claims regarding PINL’s annual earnings, the amounts paid to the different contractors and the alleged attempts to take over the Eastern corridor were made by Oliver during the briefing.
