When the Group Chief Executive Officer, GCEO, of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL, Mr. Mele Kyari, tripped the alarm, last Friday, that the authorities had discovered over 4,800 illegal connections on the national crude oil pipelines, many were shocked, thinking the the media misquoted him.
The bolt from the blue was that with what appeared to be enhanced surveillance on the pipelines by the lead security agency of the nation's coastal territory, the Nigerian Navy, Navy, Nigerian Army, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, including a private security contractor, Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, TSSNL, the situation should be a sweeping reduction.
However, Kyari, who blew the whistle, pointed out: "You have over 4,800 illegal connections on our pipelines. That means within every kilometer, you have an insertion. Even if you seal all the insertions, you cannot get what you want in terms of production. In the Niger Delta, people are coming from all parts of the country to do illegal refining. That is why we engaged locals to deal with it."
Deploring the unbecoming goings-on, he added, "We will contain this challenge. We are doing everything possible to restore sanity. What is happening is colossal damage to the environment and the host communities."
While Kyari yelled about the bizarre development, those familiar with the operations were not bewildered, for they knew that some highly placed oil bunkers were colluding with crooked security officials to frustrate the country's oil production.
If truth were told, Saturday Vanguard learned that operatives of the nation's security agencies have been working hand in glove with oil bunkers at a notorious location between Delta and Ondo States, in the past few months, where officials provide cover for oil thieves.
An oil baron purportedly working with highly wired persons, especially in the military, some oil companies, and experts to steal crude oil directly from pipelines and well jackets.
The operatives of TSSNL, operated by ex-militant leader, High Chief (Dr.) Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, have found it difficult to break the vice-like grip of the oil bunkers in said axis of the Niger Delta, which is the biggest leak point at the moment, presumably because of the protection they enjoy from security accomplices.
However, it does not seem that the security collaborators have the support of the hierarchy of the Nigerian Navy in the dubious transactions. Still, they appear well established in the system, with the manner, which they have been able to deploy half-truths to counter information about their activities, over the years.
TSSNL raised false alarm- Navy
In the latest incident involving a camouflaged thieving vessel, MT VINNALARIS 1, Lagos, caught stealing crude oil, the story of the Nigerian Navy, which declined a joint team of soldiers, NSCDC, and Tantita operatives from accessing the vessel, was that it arrested 17 crew members on board, who were engaged in illegal siphoning of crude oil.
The spokesperson, Adedotun Ayo-Vaughan in a statement, said: "Notably, as the anti-Crude Oil Theft Patrol Team of the Forward Operating Base, Igbokoda approached MT VINNALARIS 1 Lagos, the two boats attached to the vessel fled on sighting the naval personnel, which confirmed the engagement of the vessel in illegality."
"The vessel's storage capacity is about 15,000 metric tons and as of the time of arrest, she had loaded about 500 metric tons of crude oil.
"Again, it was upon the arrest of the vessel by the Nigerian Navy that the TSS (read TSSNL) began to raise false alarms, totally unfounded and indeed mischievous,"
Restricted zone, keep off
Available video on what transpired does not bear out the Navy's narration and gives the impression that the Navy was trying to conceal information.
Unknown to the Navy was that the TSSNL had intelligence on the vessel before it sailed into Nigeria, and had followed it up to the point where it was siphoning crude oil from a well jacket, but could not immediately swoop on it because it already had intelligence that there were arms and ammunition on the vessel.
A video of the encounter between the Navy personnel that rushed to the scene of crime in three gunboats, last Thursday, threatening the TSSNL team, including soldiers, laying siege to the area, to leave the vicinity, as it was a restricted zone is an eye-opener.
The leader of the TSSNL team, who spoke in Pidgin English, responding to the naval personnel who asked them to leave the area, said: "You said you are warning us, but you guys are shooting at us."
"If there is any problem, are we not uniformed men, why can't you explain what is going on here to us." (The statement indicates that the TSSNL team knew that the vessel was illegally loading crude oil from a well jacket, and did not expect the Navy personnel to ask them to leave the vicinity without a cogent explanation).
He continued: "You guys are firing at us." While the advancing Navy team was recording, the TSSNL was also videoing the encounter, and at a point, the naval officials warned the Tantita team to vacate the area, saying it was under "restriction."
The Navy did not explain why it declared the location a restricted area to the TSSNL and from the background in the video, one of TSSNL operatives said the Navy was coming to them for the third time, insisting that they should back off.
At a point in the video, a piqued soldier exchanged words with the naval team, asking why they were firing at them even though they knew they were uniformed men.
The soldier maintained that to shoot at them was against the rule of engagement.
A naval official barked: "This is the Navy, if you have orders from anywhere, call them and tell them that the Nigerian Navy said it is a restricted zone. You should leave this area, it is a restricted zone."
Despite the shooting and warning, the TSSNL team refused to leave the vicinity, but the Navy prevented them from accessing the vessel to check anything.
The ship left Ghana to steal oil in Nigeria
Shedding light on the incident, the Executive Director, Technical Operations, Captain Warredi Enisuoh, Executive Director, Operations and Technical, TSSNL, who spearheaded the investigation, said they did not disclose much about the ship before it sailed into Nigeria to compromise their investigation.
What transpired on Thursday, December 14 proved Enisuoh right. His words: "We did not reveal much when it comes to this particular ship, we took interest in this ship in 2018. What I will tell you will shock you. This ship started stealing oil in Nigeria in 2018; we were not present at that time.
"We kept monitoring every situation, and mind you; Tantita contract never stated that that area is under our responsibility. Maybe those who are talking may avail themselves of my contract terms; we got our information from Ghana, who told us that the ship had departed Ghana to come and steal oil in Nigeria.
This was around November 10, we knew about it, we knew the ship is well connected and we followed the ship until it switched off its electronic signature, about three weeks ago.
We have to create an umbrella over the Niger Delta region, and we kept monitoring. Let me tell you the history of this ship. First, it used the Sierra Leonean flag to steal from Nigeria, and nobody could catch it, we were not here at the time, second, it came close to Nigeria, possibly scared of the previous administration's (Buhari) stand against oil theft.
"It kept its flag as Togolese, but see, something very ironic, in May, this year; it changed its flag to Nigeria. It is connected to somebody, who thinks he has won, and we can steal now.
"So, who was being protected, when we caught this particular ship, we followed it for over a month until we got intelligence that it is in the area.
"We left in the morning (on December 7) to make sure that we secured the ship, but on our way there, we got further intelligence that it has four AK-47 rifles with banks of ammunition on board. They (oil thieves) are becoming smarter.
Why we kept intelligence close to our chest
These ship owners and management registered themselves in Odessa, Ukraine. We did not reveal that because we know that if we revealed at lot at that time, we would not have apprehended the ship. It is on Oscar Street in Odessa
"Therefore, when we set out, we got intelligence about the arms on board, we said okay; hang around the area until we get back-up. While waiting for the backup, we believe they (oil bunkers) saw us and contacted their shore supporters to come to their rescue, which was how the fracas started.
"What makes the ship that is stealing crude oil feel so secure and connect hose ...As we speak; we know who connected the hose
"The fellow who connected the hose is on the run... He is in Benin, we have his phone number, and we have everything. He is an expert in connecting hoses to crude pipelines. This is not the first time, that area is notorious for ships coming to steal crude."
Captain Enisuoh, who confirmed that the Navy prevented them from accessing the vessel to find out the crude oil pumped by the ship, however, said, "Tantita does not know if Navy is protecting anybody."
"We do not know, and that was why we wanted a joint investigation. I would use this opportunity to request that nobody should sweep this matter under the carpet; there is more than meets the eye. There is much documentation onboard that ship, which we need to see.
More Intel on the ship
"We do not even know apart from the electronic signature if they have officially registered the ship with the authorities, we do not know, we have to go onboard.
"We have not been allowed to board the ship, if you listen to the video very well, you would hear the announcement from the P419 boat, it clearly says that it was a restricted area, so if it is a restricted area, who is been protected?
"We have been interested in it since 2018, but as you know, we were not empowered at the time. As far as our record goes, it has changed names; I think about four times because it started with Yukan, that was the first name. Then, it changed to Randall 1 or something like that or Randil 1, and then it went to Marvel, and then recently, it changed to a Nigerian name.
Disreputable location
He identified the Aban oil field, a borderline between the operational areas of two oil companies as the location where the latest incident occurred.
"The ship went straight to the platform, and hooked... this is what they do around the Nigerian coastal area. They just go, uncouple, and load. Where are these C4 eyes, Falcon Eyes, they have to go out, and let me tell you one thing about my contract, I am paid based on performance."
Not disclosing intelligence to Navy
"I am not paid for reporting to you or reporting to anybody, who says I should just come and give them intelligence and walk away. If Nigeria does not meet its quota, they will not pay me...We are trying to understand the reason, even as we speak, that was why we escalated the issue."
Big security question
Captain Enisuoh, visibly disturbed by the inability of the Nigeria security to track down oil thieves, wondered why everybody was expecting Tantita to do the unimaginable, while TSSNL became a fall-prey
He asked, "Do you know how many detection systems that the government has invested in? There was a C41 electronic detection system domiciled in the state actor; there was C5i; there was Falcon Eye. If all these eyes have got two each, you got six eyes, so how come you cannot see these criminals."
"Then it is a small organization like Tantita that can detect this, and you are waiting for me to come, and give you information.
"What are you doing with all these eyes in this country, what are they for, so maybe the inquiry should start there, or did the foreigners sell us toys without the batteries?.
Tantita/Navy frosty relationship
Some months ago, the Navy accused four Tantita operatives of being part of a ring that stole crude oil, and they arrested them.
Enisuoh, who waved off the allegation, said, " If Tantita was going to steal crude oil, is it plausible that we would take the Civil Defence with us; and would also take the Army with us? I do not know how that will work."
"The truth is that if somebody is worried that Tantita is here to clean up this mess, I guess if you marry two wives in life, and the two wives seem to cooperate very well, you may need a third one, maybe that is what is playing out.
"But what happened? If you go back to the videos, you would discover that there were wooden boats, the fellows split in two and took off, and we chased the rest. The video is very clear, we chased them until they went out, finally beached their boats, and ran into the community.
"My people followed them while the civil defense said they would not follow them because the area they beached, they will be forced to come out with their guns, and if they lose their guns, it will be a problem.
"Therefore, our boys said they would follow them. They followed them into the community, it was in the community they raised the alarm that they were under pursuit, and it was there they (the Navy) grabbed our boys. They never grabbed our boys for stealing crude oil. No, that was not the case. It was the pursuit of the thieves."
The executive director, however, denied the relationship between the Navy and Tantita has broken down, saying, "The truth is that if you listen to the Navy, they tell you they work with a lot of security providers. I guess that it is a bit of a culture shock that maybe for the first time, they are working with somebody like Tantita, who has got such tenacity, and capacity to do damage to those who want to do damage to Nigeria."
"As we know in every 12, there is a Judas, so if you count the number of people there and multiply, we have Judas everywhere, even the Navy did say that they had court-martialed some of their people, they said that in the past. It (that axis) is not the only spot that we work with the Navy; we work up to Cawthorne Channel, in Rivers State."
Controversy over power of arrest
Dismissing the contention that the TSSNL had no power to arrest vessels loading crude oil, he said, "Every Nigerian citizen has the power of arrest because you cannot stand by and see something going wrong and allow people to damage the country."
"My (Tantita) contract empowers me to arrest, which is why I carry military personnel with me. I do not have the power to bear arms. However, in this case, there is a situation whereby evidence or intelligence indicates that there are arms and ammunition in their vessel, therefore, I cannot proceed.
"That is why we have to carry armed personnel to the scene so that if there is resistance, the armed forces can respond.
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