Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — The Movement for the Survival of Izon Ethnic Nationality in the Niger Delta have urged people in the region not to allow themselves to be divided by the recent award of N48billion pipeline surveillance given to an ex-agitator, Government Ekpemupolo.
This is as some aggrieved individuals and groups have begun agitating, making petitions and media reports disparaging the government and political office holders and giving ultimatums over the said pipeline surveillance contract.
MOSIEND President, Mr Kenedy Tonjo-West, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to disregard such petitions, saying that the issues stated therein were unfounded, lacked substance and ill orchestrated.
Tonjo-West who commended NNPC Ltd. for awarding the contract, called on all the ethnic nationalities in the region to unite as one people and to live together in tolerance.
He also called for reorientation and repositioning mechanism to recover the lost values as a region and draw inspiration from a stanza of the nation’s old National Anthem, ‘though tribes and tongue may differ in unity and brotherhood we stand.’
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, has said in response to some uninformed agitation that the said contract was awarded with strict adherence to the Procurement Act and that the companies were qualified, and we think that they deserve commendation for getting it right.
“As a group, we are calling for caution because the Federal Government in their wisdom deemed it right to involve community participation in addition to the military’s dedicated efforts in the fight against illegal bunkering and oil theft in the region.
“This singular policy by the government is already generating employment for thousands of previously jobless youths within the communities who are now trained and engaged by the companies in line with their contractual obligations.
“As co-travelers, who share the same polluted environment and have suffered losses from oil-related activities, we should learn to put our common interest above all and show our adversaries that we love ourselves.
“We should cooperate, tolerate and respect each other, promote harmonious relationships, support and share in the success of our neighbours. We should also avoid intimidating any tribe or ethnic Nationality due to their size or educational standing.
“In our view, the representatives of the government or the company cannot and should not be allowed to pitch any individual or ethnic groups against another. The representatives should conduct themselves in a manner that is worthy of the office they hold.
“We advise that individuals, ethnic Nationalities and tribes who are not directly part of the contract should never give up on our working together, let us be proactive and consciously allow for a win-win approach to enable us to grow and progress together.”
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