The Amanyanabo of Bakana, HRH King Lawrence O.O. Odum Barboy (Amabibi VIII, Odum Barboy IX), on Thursday urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, Engr. Bayo Ojulari, and National Security Adviser Malam Nuhu Ribadu to review and decentralize pipeline surveillance contracts in the Niger Delta, arguing that the current exclusive award to Tantita Security Services undermines peace, inclusivity and oil production across the region.

In a strongly worded communique, the Bakana traditional ruler described the current practice — whereby Tantita holds de facto monopoly over surveillance of oil and gas installations in the Niger Delta — as unjust, irrational and ill-suited to the varied security realities of disparate oil-bearing communities. “Tantita is not familiar with the peculiarity of these security challenges in the different oil producing communities,” the statement said, arguing that a one-size-fits-all security contractor cannot adequately address local risks or foster sustainable stability.

King Odum Barboy urged the federal government and NNPC Limited to decentralize surveillance contracts and engage prominent local stakeholders — including traditional rulers and well-established community security outfits — to improve protection of installations and stem continued incidents of oil theft, pipeline vandalism and illegal bunkering in Rivers State and beyond. He cited the Royal Fouche Security outfit, also known as Amama Soldiers, as an example of a local security force already supporting protection efforts in Degema Local Government Area and Kalabari territory but excluded from official contract awards.

“The system unjustly confers monopoly in the security of oil and gas installations in the Niger Delta region on a single entity — Tantita Security Services,” the Bakana leader said. “We want the Federal Government and NNPC Limited to decentralize the pipeline surveillance contracts, as Tantita Security Services does not possess the magic wand to address the peculiar security challenges in different oil-bearing communities in the region.”

The monarch also accused Tantita’s special taskforce coordinator for the area, Mr. Wilson Reuben, of cutting off communications with Bakana leadership and effectively marginalizing the community despite its status as a principal host community. Bakana hosts significant infrastructure, the statement noted: Oil Mining Lease (OML) 18 operated by NNPC Eighteen Operating Limited and major high-pressure gas pipelines operated by NLNG and OANDO (formerly Nigerian Agip Oil Company).

“It is unfortunate that Bakana, which is a major host of OML-18 as well as major high-pressure gas pipelines, would be completely sidelined and neglected by a security outfit engaged by the Federal Government to secure oil installations in our domain,” the communique read. The monarch said attempts to engage Mr. Reuben have been ignored, with calls unreturned and lines of communication severed.

As a result, Bakana has demanded that Tantita relocate its surveillance camps from Bakana territory, saying the outfit does not acknowledge the community’s rights or traditional authority and is therefore no longer welcome.

The Amanyanabo framed his appeal as a plea for fairness, transparency and inclusivity that would, in his view, lead to sustainable peace, improved security of assets and increased oil production — and by extension greater national revenue. He urged federal authorities to consider qualified local individuals and traditional rulers for surveillance roles in Rivers State, asserting that local engagement would produce better intelligence, reduce sabotage and foster community cooperation.

The statement from Bakana was signed by HRH King Lawrence O.O. Odum Barboy on Thursday, January 22, 2026.

Requests for comment sent to Tantita Security Services and to the office of Tantita’s Special Taskforce Coordinator, Mr. Wilson Reuben, were not immediately answered. Representatives for NNPC Limited and the National Security Adviser’s office did not respond to inquiries at the time of publication.