FG’s blunders in pipeline surveillance contracts —ERADIRI, IYC PRESIDENT

THERE was an attack on oil facility few days after the presidential election in Delta state. Have the youths relocated to the creeks because President Goodluck Jonathan lost the election?

The pipeline that was blown up in Delta state had no bearing with the outcome of the March 28 election. Clearly the grievance of those behind it when I spoke to some of them was that they were not accommodated in the pipeline surveillance contracts awarded before the presidential election. I had warned before the jobs were awarded that part of why the pipelines were destroyed in the past in the region was because the contracts given out earlier   by the federal government did not go to residents of most of the communities.

This time again, they neglected the communities. Government gave the jobs to members of the Odua People’s Congress, OPC. Some of us did not see why OPC should get the jobs when community -based organizations in Niger Delta have not been given. You must make communities be part of the oil resource in their areas to be able to protect the oil facilities. It is a natural thing.

But they went ahead to award the jobs to ex militants, individuals who already are resented in communities. Some youths from the Urhobo, Isoko,Ikwerre platforms all over the Niger delta where there are oil facilities  started asking questions to know why they were not carried along in the process since they are the ones who are residents in the communities where the jobs are.

So what happened in Delta state was a protest in response to the award of the contracts for the pipeline surveillance which a lot of people felt was wrongly awarded. They felt it should have been given to community based organizations.

There are fears that Ijaw boys are going to resume hostilities in the Niger Delta. What is your position on this?

We met recently and the essence of the meeting was to douse tension. Because we sensed the tension in the country and saw that people were mobilizing. I decided to call for the emergency meeting; it was widely attended by youths from across the region. We resolved on key issues and conditions for ceasefire. The communique will be released soon.

We denounced any form of violence even if we are not happy with the outcome of the presidential elections. We have shown to the world by the conduct of President Goodluck Jonathan that the Niger Delta people are mature people. When Buhari lost to this same President in an election in 2011, he did not congratulate him. He did not accept defeat and thousands of Nigerians, billions of properties were destroyed as a result of Buhari’s conduct.

With the build up to the election, it was clear that the nation may go up in flames. Because our President realised this and has said consistently that no man’s blood is worth his ambition he decided to accept defeat even when they were cogent reasons for him to disagree. When our leader and father had taken a position, we his children decided to key into what he did.