OpeOluwani Akintayo
18 January 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos – The Niger Delta Avengers, NDA, has threatened to renew attacks on Nigeria’s oil installations, but this time, on deepwater operations.
In a statement signed by its spokesperson, ‘Maj.Gen.’ Murdoch Agbinibo, on Wednesday, the group advised the government to brace up for “doom” as it had concluded arrangement “to unleash on the oil sector in few days’ time”.
According to the statement, the round of attacks will be the “most deadly” and will be targeted at the deep sea operations of the multinationals which includes Bonga Platform, Agbami, EA Field, Britania U Field, Akpo Field amongst others across the deepwater of the Niger Delta.
NDA warned the operators of the Egina FPSO to stay away from the project, adding that “we are tracking its movement “.
“We mean it when we say they (the oil installations) shall dance to the sound of the fury of the Niger Delta Avengers. Good thing the ocean is wide enough to accommodate as many wrecks as possible”, the statement said.
The group said that on January 15, 2018 being the 62nd historic remembrance day of the 1956 discovery of commercial oil by Shell Darcy in the now “forgotten and dejected” Oloibiri community in the Niger Delta, it had summoned a meeting of “all our operatives” from across the Niger Delta to review the progress of its operations so far, and deliberate on the planned actions for the future.
The statement disclosed that it was agreed at the meeting that the killings and division presently playing out in Nigeria make “this the perfect time to restructure this country”.
“While promising a brutal outpour of our wrath, which shall shake the coffers of the failed Nigerian nation, our demand unambiguously is for government to restructure this country”.
On November 3, last year, the group had threatened to reactivate “operation red economy” but was halted by interventions from leaders it described as “overzealous and over patriotic elders”.
According to the statement, the group lamented that despite the interventions for it not to carry out attacks twice now, “we have not achieved any meaningful results…the Niger Delta elders are either irresponsible or the Nigerian government is not sincere with them as it is their trade in stock”.
Because of the above, NDA said it had resolved not to listen to the Niger Delta elders “as we shall not rest until such enemies are defeated by the Niger Delta People who earnestly seek to control our own resources”.
The group insisted it wants “control of our resources” and directly use them to better our lot instead of “being enslaved and made to beg before crumbs are released in a dress rehearsal-like manner to intervention agencies that are ineffective at addressing our challenges”.
It argued that while $1 billion from the Excess Crude Account was released to fight Boko Haram in the North, the government has acted “blind” to the obvious array of challenges being faced by the region where the wealth is being generated.
“…Government derives pleasure in sending their unprofessional and weak military to invade our communities and subject our already sick and suffering people to more hardship and poverty.
“Only a few days ago, the Nigerian Army released 244 members of the murderous Boko Haram sect to Borno state government while thousands of innocent Niger Delta youths continue to suffer in various prisons across the country for no just cause,” the group said.
It demanded, “the immediate release” of all Niger Delta activists and freedom fighters that are being held captive by the Nigeria Armed Forces.
“The extrajudicial cold blooded murder of Kareowei and 20 members of his gang by the Nigerian Army after deceiving them with Amnesty offer is very unprofessional; yes they were common criminals who brought pain to our own people but going ahead to murder them after reaching an agreement with them and making them to surrendered to the army is a clear pointer to the insincerity of the Nigerian Government at handling issues that concern the Niger Delta; just like the Nigerian Government daily deceive the international community of how professional the multinationals are carrying out their operations and how vast they have developed our lands; when the reverse is actually the case on ground.
“Let the Kareowei issue be a lesson to all freedom fighters across the Niger Delta never to fall for the antics of the insincere Nigerian Government; put the fear of death aside and fight till the last drop of blood whenever you are engaged in a gun duel with the Nigeria Army as it is this same path we have chosen to glory. Again, the Niger Delta Avengers wish Nigeria a doomed 2018; courtesy the skilled hands of our fierce and smooth operatives across the Niger Delta”, the statement further read.
