N’Delta militants suspend attack on pipelines

A group of Niger Delta militants, known as the Isourhobo Bombers, has suspended its planned attack on oil and gas pipelines in Urhobo and Isoko communities in Delta State.

Led by Titus Deadman, the group had opposed the pipeline security surveillance contracts of OML 30 and OML34 which were awarded to Zane Energy owned by Jimmy Omo-Agege, a younger brother to the Delta senator, Ovie Omo-Agege.

The group had given the Federal Government a seven-day to hand over the contract to the Mayor of Urhoboland, Eshanekpe Israel, a.k.a Akpodoro, who they said was entitled to it.

But in a statement by Deadman on Friday, he said the group had decided to embrace negotiation and suspend its planned attack due to the intervention of the Interim Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, General Barry Ndiomu (retd.), the Riverine Peace Initiative in the Niger Delta, and the Urhobo Progressive Union, Vanguard reported.

The statement read, “We have agreed to call off the ultimatum. We have agreed to return to the round table for negotiation and for peace to reign.

“The Amnesty boss spoke to us through our trusted mediator His Excellency Akpodoro, Mayor of Urhoboland, at a breath-taken nocturnal meeting with our representative as against the demagoguery posture of the FG to immediately reverse itself and re-award the surveillance contract to us.

“Yes, the UPU led by Barrister Ese Gam, is among the bodies that we have chosen to trust in this negotiation and we elected to suspend the strike based on their peace efforts; ditto the Comrade Toluwa Mulade’s RPIND. We have listened to you all, and based on the trust and confidence reposed on the above-mentioned personalities, and having consulted widely, the seven-day ultimatum is hereby suspended.”

(Punch)