Militants declare total war on FG, oil companies

TVC N. Militants in the Niger Delta region have resumed hostilities with an attacked on a crude oil delivery line that supplies product to the Ughelli quality control center in Delta state.

The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate (NDGJM) which claimed responsibility for the attack on Friday, October 13, also launched its “Operation Hammurabi Code” named after a former King of Babylonia (1792-1750bc) in mockery of the “Operation Crocodile Smile, after the Nigeria Army.

The NDGJM, according to Vanguard, said it carried out the attack on Thursday, October 13. “At about 2100hours of Thursday, October 13, 2016, the Akuma Strike Team of the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate brought down the Iwhremaro to the Ughelli Quality Control Centre (QCC) delivery line to signal the commencement of the Operation Hammurabi Code,” spokesperson for group, Gen’ Aldo Agbalaja said.

“We have been patient and reasonable all along; hence our choice to restrict our activities to mild operations that were not aimed at causing critical damages, but it has now become crystal clear that we are dealing with devious and incorrigible people,” Agbalaja added.

The QCC which is being operated by the Nigeria Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) plays host to four crude oil tank farms, receives products from six oil fields within the Oil Mining Lease 30 and supplies crude oil and gas to the Forcados Terminal, Warri and Kaduna refineries.

The group which served a notice to the Nigerian government and multinationals about the launch of Operation Hammurabi Code warned, that henceforth it shall be an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. “Now you shall know what uprooting of your cherished assets means. It starts from now on, there is no longer going to be warnings or special consideration for anybody,” it said. NDGJM accused the federal government of divide and rule and labeled oil companies a leopard incapable of changing its skin.

“We have observed that the leopard of the oil company is incapable of changing its skin; ever deceiving, ever conniving. Your ‘divide-and-rule’ gimmick will fail here as we will not stay idle in the face of your lies,” the group said. “We have said it once and we shall repeat it here now; the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate will not call this campaign off in secret, when we see reason to do so and we decide to do so, we shall reach the world publicly through this same channel, from where we took off.”

Meanwhile, Oil giant company, Chevron Nigeria Limited has received an ultimatum by leaders of a community in Delta state. The 14-day ultimatum was issued by the leaders of Okoyitoru community in Gbaramatu Kingdom, Warri South-West Local Government Area of Delta state. The leaders mandated the oil company to commence pilling and sand filling of the community that has been environmentally devastated following activities by Chevron in the area.

The ultimatum was conveyed through a letter written by a lawyer Omes Ogedegbe on behalf of the community and address to the company’s managing director of Chevron was dated October 10, 2016.