NDDC Board: Militants Back Tompolo’s Seven-Day Ultimatum To FG

Some militants in the Niger Delta have backed Government Ekpomupolo, also known as Tompolo, on the seven-day ultimatum he gave to President Muham­madu Buhari and the Min­ister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, to recon­stitute the NDDC board or risk a major breakdown of law and order in the region.

Tompolo issued the ultima­tum on Sunday at his Gbara­matu country home in Delta State, saying that last week’s three-day protest by members of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) would be a child’s play if the agency’s board was not inaugurated after seven days.

The militants under the aus­pices of the Supreme Egbesu Freedom Fighters Movement said they would join forces with the IYC to cripple the country’s economy by shutting down oil facilities in the region if the commission’s board was not appointed within seven days.

The group in a statement on Monday via electronic mail signed by its Commander, Gen­eral Agadagba 1 Obus, also known as ‘Thunder’ said that Buhari’s refusal to inaugurate a substantive board of the NDDC was totally unacceptable.

The militants warned that they would carry out a coor­dinated combined operation hash-tagged #ShutdownOil­flowStationsAndPipeline­ForNDDCboardInauguration# if the president failed to heed the seven days notice.

According to them, the Nem­be Creek Trunk Line in Bayelsa Stats that transports crude oil to the Bonny Oil Terminal in Riv­ers State would be one of their targets in the planned attacks.

They said, ”We will have no choice (after seven days) than to join forces with the Ijaw Youth Council and other agitating militant groups in the creeks to shut down oil exploration activities at all flow stations in the region.

“We have identified targets to include the Escravos-Warri to Kaduna NNPC major deliv­ery crude line, Escravos-Lagos Atlas cove delivery line and the Trans Escravos Warri Kaduna gas line that supply electricity to Abuja will not be spared.

“Andtherewillbenogassup­ply for electricity in Abuja, Lagos, Kaduna and the Northern part of the country. Also, the Trans Forcados 48-inches terminal underwater Shell/NNPC crude delivery pipeline with most of the Chevron RMP24 Clough Creek line will all be brought to a standstill in the wake of this seven days ultrasound.

“On this note, the Supreme Egbesu Freedom Fighters Movement and the other agi­tating militant groups in the creek, urge President Muham­madu Buhari-led APC Federal Government, as a matter of security concern and for the interest of peace and economic stability, to immediately call the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Mr Godswill Akpabio, and his cohorts to lay off their hands and let the Presidency quick­ly call for the inauguration of the NDDC board without any further delay in the interest of peace in the Niger Delta region and for the overall interest of the country.”