Security operatives in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, are now on high alert following intelligence reports that former militant commanders under the aegis of Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) may be considering moving back to the creeks to resume the insurgency in the Niger Delta.
The decision to move back to the creeks may not be unconnected to Mr. Government Ekpemupolo, aka Tompolo, who summoned a meeting of the ex-militant warlords for tomorrow in Yenagoa.
Although no reason has been given for the possible return to the waterways, THISDAY gathered that Tompolo has been on a security watch list following the removal of the former Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and the subsequent termination of the security surveillance contract of Tompolo's company by the federal government.
The summon, which was contained in a statement issued by Tompolo’s media aide, Paul Bebeminibo, and signed by Tompolo stated that the meeting scheduled for Saturday July 25th would take place in Yenagoa.
According to the statement, “My dearly beloved commanders and leaders of various wings of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), I greet you all. It is my pleasure to humbly invite you to a very crucial meeting.”
Tompolo, who is a close confidant of former President Goodluck Jonathan, is said to be bitter about the decision of the federal government to terminate his surveillance contract.
Although the agenda of the meeting was closely guarded by the ex-militants, they may also deliberate on issues pertaining to the alleged plan by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to arrest Jonathan, probe his government; the refusal to accede to the plea by the people of the region for the quick appointment of a substantive Special Adviser on the Amnesty Programme and payment of allowances and scholarship fees to ex-militants undergoing training in Nigeria and abroad.
An ex-militant, who was a member of MEND, told newsmen that the meeting might also deliberate on the formation of a new MEND and take a position on the actions of Buhari since his assumption of office.
“We are not meeting to declare war,” he insisted. “But the meeting will carefully discuss issues of interest as it affects the Niger Delta region.”
“If you check the region since assumption of power by President Buhari, there are signs of tension due to the administration’s perceived animosity against the region and the beneficiaries of the federal government’s Amnesty Programme. Women have cried out and have pleaded but no answer from Buhari. We cannot fold our arms and let the boys be provoked into violence,” he added.
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