A fresh crisis is stirring in the Niger Delta as the Warri Indigenous People’s Movement (WIPM) hs accused ex-militant Tompolo and his firm, Tantita Security Services, of land grabs and harassment of Itsekiri communities under the guise of pipeline surveillance.
In a strongly worded statement released on Tuesday, WIPM said its peaceful protest and petition to the National Security Adviser and the Presidency on June 18 were being met with “diversionary counter-protests” sponsored by Tantita to discredit their claims. The group warned that Itsekiri patience was running thin.
“This is not about opposing Tompolo’s contract. This is about the systematic displacement of our people and the annexation of our lands,” said Hon. Kingsley Tenumah, WIPM Chairman.
The movement alleged that Tantita operatives have turned security operations into tools of intimidation.
Several Itsekiri communities—Usor, Tisun, Ajelebe, Akpata, Kantu, and Ijaghala—have reportedly been raided, residents arrested, and some detained in a private facility in Oporoza, Gbaramatu.
WIPM also raised alarm over incidents where Globacom workers were arrested while installing telecom masts in Kantu, as well as alleged interference in INEC ward delineation, with Itsekiri lands reportedly renamed and reallocated to Gbaramatu-linked communities using falsified coordinates.
“If the roles were reversed, would Tompolo’s kinsmen surrender their identity for crumbs? This is an ethnic and economic assault disguised as a contract,” said Comrade Monoyo Edon, WIPM General Secretary.
The group warned that the activities of Tantita in the Warri area violate Section 257 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which holds host communities responsible for the protection of oil infrastructure and may lead to the forfeiture of vital development funds in the event of unrest.
WIPM is now calling on President Bola Tinubu’s government to revoke the Tantita surveillance contract in the Warri area and reassign it to competent, community-based Itsekiri security outfits, citing the need for transparency, equity, and preservation of ethnic identity.
While Tompolo’s camp is yet to formally respond to the latest accusations, insiders say the allegations may complicate the federal government’s ongoing review of security contracts in the oil-rich Niger Delta.
