By Gabriel Ewepu
ABUJA — The Movement for the Survival of the Izon Ethnic Nationality in the Niger Delta (MOSIEND) has called for restraint amid the controversy surrounding pipeline surveillance contracts, warning that disagreements over contracts and money must not be allowed to trigger ethnic tension in the region.
The group, one of the Niger Delta’s longstanding sociocultural and mass-mobilisation organisations, said the region had suffered enough from division, marginalisation, insecurity and underdevelopment to allow disputes involving individuals or companies to fuel ethnic suspicion and confrontation.
MOSIEND was reacting to an allegation by prominent Niger Delta figure, HRH Alhaji Asari Dokubo, concerning the alleged annual value of ₦2.7 trillion in pipeline surveillance contracts, in which the Olu of Warri and Chief Osahon Okunbo of Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL) were referenced.
The allegation has prompted a response from a representative of the Olu of Warri and generated divergent reactions across the region.
In a statement signed by its President, Dr Kennedy Tonjo West, the group said it would neither endorse nor authenticate the disputed figure, insisting that allegations involving public funds must be supported by evidence and subjected to appropriate institutional scrutiny.
“If there is an allegation, let there be evidence,” MOSIEND said, urging stakeholders to address questions surrounding public funds, contracts and procurement through established institutions rather than speculation, ethnic sentiment or public condemnation without evidence.
The group noted that the Olu of Warri’s representative had rejected the allegation and called for scrutiny of the relevant contracts, procurement processes, corporate records, government approvals and performance reports.
It described such scrutiny as a fair and responsible way to establish the facts and resolve the controversy.
However, MOSIEND said its greater concern was the risk of the dispute taking on an ethnic dimension.
It warned that a disagreement involving individuals, companies or contractual interests must not degenerate into confrontation among Ijaw, Itsekiri, Urhobo or other Niger Delta ethnic groups.
The organisation recalled the region’s long history of coexistence, noting that its diverse communities had traded, intermarried, shared waterways and faced common challenges, including economic deprivation, environmental degradation, insecurity and political marginalisation.
It said the shared interests of the region’s ethnic nationalities should take precedence over disagreements involving individuals or corporate interests.
MOSIEND specifically identified the Ijaw, Itsekiri, Urhobo, Isoko, Ikwerre, Anang, Ogoni, Ibibio, Efik, Kalabari, Andoni, Obolo and other Niger Delta communities as peoples whose fortunes were interconnected.
“We can disagree without becoming enemies. We can be different and still be one,” the group said.
Group backs scrutiny of pipeline contracts
MOSIEND reaffirmed its support for legitimate efforts to protect oil and gas infrastructure and tackle crude oil theft, illegal bunkering and pipeline vandalism.
It said the involvement of indigenous companies in safeguarding critical economic assets should be regarded as a positive development, provided their operations complied with the law and contractual requirements.
The group said indigenous operators, including PINL, Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited and MATON, should be assessed on their performance, contractual obligations, measurable results and compliance with the law rather than the ethnicity of their owners.
It added that it had received encouraging feedback from communities along the Eastern Corridor concerning PINL’s operations.
MOSIEND also cautioned against viewing the roles of the Olu of Warri, Chief Osahon Okunbo and other Niger Delta stakeholders in legitimate economic and security activities through an ethnic lens.
The organisation described the emergence of more indigenous companies in strategic sectors of the oil and gas industry as a potential source of regional progress.
“The success of an Ijaw enterprise should not be an Itsekiri loss, just as the success of an Itsekiri enterprise should not be an Ijaw loss. Every legitimate Niger Delta success should be a regional success,” it said.
MOSIEND urges Asari-Dokubo, others to exercise restraint
The group appealed to the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III, and those around the throne to consider the wider interests of peace and regional harmony when responding to issues of this nature.
It also appealed to the Amanyanabo of Torusarama Piri (Elem Kalabari), HRH King Asari-Dokubo, to exercise caution in public statements concerning individuals, ethnic identity, contracts and sensitive economic arrangements.
While acknowledging his longstanding advocacy on Niger Delta issues, MOSIEND said statements by prominent regional figures carried considerable weight and should be made with due regard for their potential consequences.
The organisation stressed that public figures had the right to challenge government policies, contractual arrangements and business practices but should distinguish between allegations and established facts, as well as opinions and evidence.
“Where there are genuine concerns about public contracts, let the contracts be examined. Let the procurement processes be scrutinised. Let the appropriate institutions investigate. Let those accused have the opportunity to respond. That is how a serious society resolves disputes,” the group said.
MOSIEND also warned young people and social media users against turning disagreements involving prominent Niger Delta personalities into ethnic contests for online attention.
“No amount of clicks, views or likes is worth the peace of the Niger Delta,” it said.
The organisation urged all parties to lower tensions, avoid inflammatory narratives and allow evidence and due process to determine the issues at stake.
It said the region had paid a heavy price for division and should not pass unresolved conflicts and ethnic suspicion to the next generation.
“We have lived together, survived together and faced the same challenges together. Let us now build and prosper together. The Niger Delta is one family,” MOSIEND said.
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