..."Even the President Doesn't Own Private Prisons," as He Continues to Question Tompolo's Oporoza Illegal Detention Centre

A wise philosopher once said that evil flourishes best when kept in total secrecy. That statement accurately describes the extreme cruelty, torture, oppression, and violence currently taking place across the riverine communities of the Niger Delta.

Apostle Comrade Ezekiel Daniel has raised a strong alarm over the situation, revealing that residents are living through a nightmare under the shadow of Tantita Security Services, controlled by Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo.

According to him, the original idea behind pipeline surveillance began during the presidency of Goodluck Jonathan. President Jonathan created the scheme to empower local leaders, ex-agitators, and community stakeholders who understood the terrain better than conventional security agencies.

The main goal was to maintain lasting peace, which was essential for smooth crude oil production. To prevent conflict and promote fairness, the contract was split among various regional leaders, including Tompolo, Boyloaf, King Ateke Tom, Asari Dokubo, Farah Dagogo, and others.

He said it is important for the President to follow Goodluck Jonathan's approach by decentralising the pipeline surveillance contract among stakeholders.

He further suggested that Tompolo and leaders from the Urhobo and Itsekiri ethnic groups should manage Delta State. Boyloaf and other leaders should cover Bayelsa State, Shoot-at-Sight and his team should handle Ondo State, while the Egbema group should secure Edo State.

He reiterated that during that period of shared management, Nigeria's crude oil production reached a healthy 2.4 million barrels per day. The region enjoyed genuine peace, and communities lived without fear.

He noted that human rights abuses were virtually non-existent at the time, and no one was abducted, tortured, or thrown into illegal private prisons.

When President Jonathan left office, the late Captain Hosa Okunbo took over the contract and maintained a respectful relationship with the local communities.

However, he emphasized that conditions deteriorated rapidly in 2022 when the government awarded the entire pipeline surveillance contract exclusively to PINL, Tantita, and Maton Engineering following the death of Capt. Hosa.

Since that decision, riverine communities have suffered a daily wave of killings, kidnappings, and harassment, while Nigeria's crude oil production has continued to decline. He explained that giving a few people complete control over Bayelsa, Rivers, Delta, Edo, and Ondo states removed all checks and balances.

Under the previous decentralised arrangement, ex-agitator leaders would never have allowed outside operatives to cross into their territories to abduct residents and take them to Oporoza.

Highlighting international reactions to these actions, he stated that complaints filed with the United States Embassy over alleged human rights violations contributed to the visa cancellation of Kestin Pondi, a key official linked to the Tantita security outfit.

Expressing deep concern over the centralisation of power, he warned that Tantita Security Services has effectively built an unchecked regime.

He stated that citizens can no longer voice criticism on social media or in traditional news outlets without facing immediate abduction and detention in alleged illegal facilities in Oporoza.

He questioned how a private citizen could be allowed to operate four illegal detention facilities.

He stressed that even the President of Nigeria, who serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, does not operate private prisons, making it unlawful for a private contractor to do so.

In his final appeal, Apostle Comrade Ezekiel Daniel urged President Bola Tinubu to decentralise the pipeline surveillance contract immediately.

He called for a system in which each region protects its own territory, emphasising that breaking up the monopoly is the only way to end oppression and restore peace to the Niger Delta.