Tompolo: How Delta Govt Splashed N100m on Riverine Communities to Halt Protests During Osinbajo’s Visit

Fresh facts have emerged why the people of the state especially the Ijaws

in the riverine communities of Delta State did not disrupt the reception
of Nigeria’s Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, during his recent
visit to the state.

The VP, penultimate week, visited the Forcados Terminal, a major export line
operated by the Anglo-Dutch oil firm, Shell Petroleum Development Company
(SPDC), which was destroyed by a shadowy militant group, Niger Delta
Avengers (NDA), over alleged witch hunting of the ex-warlord, Chief
Government Ekpemupolo alias Tompolo , who is facing prosecution in
absentia for corrupt enrichment. The people had planned to stage protests
over the travails of the former commander of the defunct Movement for the
Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND) on one hand and the lingering fuel
shortage on the other as well as the underdevelopment of the Niger Delta.

Sensing that the protests would mar the visit, the state government
reportedly moved swiftly and appeased the communities with cash gifts
running into several millions of naira and top government officials from
the areas were charged to nip the protests in the bud.

Sources confided in our reporter that about N5 million each was doled out to
community leaders in the riverside communities and hosts to the facility
even as Osubi community in Okpe council where the airport is situated also
got her fair share of the largesse.

Even at that, security was water tight during the VP’s visit. Nigeria Vice
President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo had after inspecting the damaged
pipeline, described it as the worst kind of terrorism, but stressed that
the Federal and State government were committed to ensure its quick repair
to ease the hardship faced by Nigerians because fuel shortage.

He said the federal government would not condone such dastardly act
because it was criminal and had adverse effect on the economy.

“Federal government is working with the state and Shell Petroleum
Development Company to ensure that the damaged pipeline is repaired
quickly because government is losing a lot of money since that terminal
stopped working about 300,000 barrels of crude oil daily is shut in which
is a great loss to our economy.

“Pipeline vandalism is what we are trying to curtail and we are beefing up
security in the area to ensure that such incident does not happen again
because it has also affected gas production in the country resulting in
the epileptic power supply being experienced in the country,” he said.

In his remarks, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa said the Focardos Terminal was
important to both the federal and state governments as “all production on
land both crude and gas by Shell has been reduced. This is affecting power
supply in the country.”

He expressed optimism that the repair works on the damaged pipeline would be
completed by May ending for operations to commence saying ” we were
briefed by Shell that the repair works on the pipeline will be completed
by May ending, it means that the terminal will become functional soon.”