Fejiro Oliver Warns Asari Dokubo Against Bid for Eastern Corridor Pipeline Contract

Niger Delta activist Fejiro Oliver has warned former militant leader Asari Dokubo against an alleged attempt to take control of the Eastern Corridor pipeline surveillance contract, insisting that host communities across the region should have opportunities to secure pipelines in their areas.

Oliver made the remarks while speaking to reporters in Abuja on Tuesday amid an ongoing dispute over the distribution of pipeline surveillance contracts and allegations about the sums paid to contractors.

The controversy intensified after Dokubo accused the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III, and other individuals of receiving ₦2.7 trillion annually from pipeline surveillance contracts. The monarch’s representative subsequently challenged Dokubo to provide evidence to support the allegation.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, Prince Collins Oritsetjmeyin Edema, the monarch’s sole representative to NNPC Limited and joint-venture partners, said Dokubo’s comments had to be considered in the context of the sensitive political and ethnic dynamics surrounding pipeline surveillance in the Niger Delta.

Edema also argued that public statements about the monarch, Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL), Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, and other stakeholders could have consequences beyond the immediate dispute.

Speaking separately, Oliver said he had previously advocated for pipeline surveillance contracts to be distributed more widely among host communities. He argued that communities through which pipelines pass should have a direct opportunity to participate in protecting the infrastructure.

Oliver said he was uncomfortable with the existing distribution of contracts, claiming that two of the three contractors were Ijaw-owned, while PINL was led by an Edo man and had the Olu of Warri, an Itsekiri monarch, as chairman.

He also said Dokubo had previously supported calls to decentralise pipeline surveillance contracts but expressed surprise at what he described as an alleged attempt by the former militant leader to secure the Eastern Corridor contract.

“Asari is someone I respect and still respect as an elder in the struggle for resource control even though through militancy – a move that is now outdated and taken over by the pen and intellectual reasoning which people like myself and others now champion,” Oliver said.

The activist disputed the figures cited by Dokubo, saying the former militant leader had referred to ₦2.1 trillion paid to Tantita Security Services and Maton Engineering, based on figures Oliver said he had previously calculated from dollar-denominated payments.

“Asari quotes N2.1 trillion paid to Tantita/Maton because I revealed the figures after my conversion of the dollar equivalent paid to the companies. He has never seen the contract papers. I have,” he said.

Oliver rejected Dokubo’s alleged ₦2.7 trillion figure, describing it as misleading. However, the financial figures cited by the various parties were not independently verified in the information provided.

The activist further argued that the Eastern Corridor should remain with the existing stakeholders serving Itsekiri and Edo interests, while other communities that he said had not received direct surveillance contracts should be considered for greater participation.

He listed Urhobo, Isoko, Ilaje, Opobo, Bakassi, Ibibio, Efik and Ogoni communities among those he believes should have a stronger opportunity to benefit from pipeline surveillance arrangements.

The dispute highlights continuing tensions over how pipeline surveillance contracts are allocated in the Niger Delta, where oil infrastructure security, host-community interests and revenue distribution remain sensitive issues.

The claims concerning Dokubo’s alleged bid for the Eastern Corridor contract and the amounts paid to surveillance contractors remain allegations that require independent confirmation.