LAGOS AUGUST 26TH (URHOBOTODAY)- I have read with utmost dismay  the resentment of  the  Amalgamated Arewa Youth Group over  the N4bn monthly pipeline surveillance contract awarded  to  Government Ekpemupolo, aka Tompolo, by the Nigerian National Petroleum Limited, an amount   which I consider a peanut in the circumstance .

Today the Northern States of Nigeria are   plagued with insecurity ,  senseless  killings, raping, sodomy ,  extortion , brutalisation and  dehumanisation of human beings  , wanton  destruction of properties , unemployment,  famine , terrorism ,  abject poverty,  the menace of   Almajiri  ,  the institutionalisation and implementation of the sharia criminal justice system , religious intolerance,  fanaticism,  extremism and radicalism, child marriage and the millions of Northerns living in Internally displaced persons camps under poor and excruciating conditions .   

It is unfortunate and regrettable that  the Amalgamated Arewa Group Youths have failed, refused and or neglected   to address these core and critical issues  but instead have   choose to concern itself  with petty  issues  like the award of contract in far away Niger Delta .

It is laughable that the Amalgamated Arewa Group Youths   who have failed  to  hand down ultimatum to  the fedederal government to fix  the insecurity problems   in the country , particularly in the  North are  the ones  now  giving   a seven-day ultimatum to  the federal government or its agent (NNPC) to revoke the contract given to Tompolo or be forced to either protest or take legal action.

Imagine the group is calling  on  President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to sack the Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva; and Director, Upstream of the NNPC LTD, Adokiye Tombomelye, for promoting ethnic and regional interest but have failed to  call President Buhari to order over his  being clannish and a religious bigot . Why are they  feigning ignorance of the fact that  in the past seven years over ninety percent of top positions in public offices ,  government agencies , parastatals, juicy appointments , slots  and contracts in Nigeria are  being occupied, enjoyed  and/or assigned to  Northerners who are Muslims  ?  Why are they  feigning ignorance of the fact that over eight five  percent of the crude   oil  well situated in the Niger Delta where Tompolo comes from are  being owned by  Northerners and not one single oil is owned by Tompolo or any Niger Deltan ?

I am not holding Tompolo’s brief but suffice  it to say that the man is a Niger Deltan and like every Niger Deltan  he  deserves the award of    the contract  in question  and even more .

On the issue of black mail , the black mailer here is the federal government and   not Tompolo. .  We are not foolish,   we know that the federal government is using the divide and rule tactics to black mail Tompolo by turning him   against   his kits and Kins . The federal government of Nigeria is using our sons and brothers for peanuts to protect the pipelines while it is stealing  our collective wealth in the Niger Delta  at the risk of their  lives . Many  activist of  the Niger  Delta extraction   christen militants by the federal government  who refused to be black mailed were  declared fugitives ,  hunted down like animals  , disgraced and  killed  .  If it is possible for the  federal government to take Tompolo out of the equation   it would have done so long ago but unfortunately  it can not  hence  it  has followed wise counsel by play ball with  Tompolo.

On the issue of Tompolo being declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission by the current regime of President Buhari, I say  it is a pity that these purported group of Northern  youths are far behind time and are not in touch with reality . Why I say this is because the case against  Tompolo that they are talking about  is now res judicata whereas he has being charged to court on a 40 count charge  and all the charges   dismissed by a court of competent jurisdiction earning him a discharge and acquittal .

It is hypocritical that  the Amalgamated Arewa Group Youths  sees the award of the contract  to Tompolo as  reward for  criminality, ,  triumph  over our nation’s Armed Forces and over  200 million Nigerians  and  the  abdication of responsibilities without failing to raise same grave  concern over  Boko Haram , Fulani herdsmen, Iswap, bandits and other terrorist groups of Northern extraction who kill Nigerians and our  service men ,  destroy our properties and facilities  and attack our  business concerns . The killing of our  Brigade of guards  , the shooting down of our Aircrafts , the attacks on  our Air ports ,  rail line ,  correctional center facility and Nigerian  Defence Academy without any consequences are still very fresh in our minds .

Nigeria is a great nation with enough for every Nigerian if only the country can be restructured in such away to allow the  component parts to manage their human and natural resources while paying  tax to the center in Abuja .  It is the height of injustice and crime against  human for Nigeria to for over five decades tap the crude oil belonging  to the people of Niger Delta for the benefit of all Nigerians while leaving them in abject poverty and squalor with  polluted environment  that is not fit for them to eke out a living as their fishing waters are filled with crude oil killing all the aquatic life therein. It is injustice and inhuman for the Nigerian state to continue to tap the oil and gas of the Niger Delta   while preserving the mineral resources of other component parts .

I  advise the Amalgamated Arewa Youth Group  to stop being devious,  myopic , selfish and self centered . The North cannot keep their Gold , Pyrite , Mable ,, Barite , Bauxite , Bentolitic clay , Beryle ,cassitterite  cittirite , calcite ,Rutile  copper ore, Zinc Ore , zircon ,  Topaz , flourite Uranium  , Gem Stones , Aquamarine , Sapphire , Tourmaline , Amethyst,  Quartz  ,Agate  , Garnet ., graphite and over fifty other solid mineral  resources and  be crying over the crude oil of the people of the Niger Delta .

It is about  time for  Nigeria to start tapping the mineral resources in the North and other parts of Nigeria for the benefit of all Nigerians  or better still allow the different component parts of Nigeria to manage their mineral we ral  resource paying tax to the federal government of Nigeria and as well paying  reparation to the people and states of the Niger Delta for having being exploited  and cheated for over  five decades by the rest of the country.

Chief (Barr) Malcolmm Omirhobo, a human right lawyer writes from Lagos