We Have Reached Our Breaking Point ; Bayelsa Leader Calls on Tinubu to Decentralize Pipeline Surveillance

…As Tension Rises in Bayelsa as Leader Accuse Top Security Firms of Violent Extralegal Abuses

Community leader Chief Pius Wariyei has issued an urgent appeal to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, continue the calling for the immediate decentralization of oil pipeline surveillance contracts across the Niger Delta states to restore lasting peace and security to the region.

Chief Wariyei warned that allowing external security firms to operate in Bayelsa State has triggered widespread unrest, leaving local residents living in constant fear. He alleged that contractors tasked with protecting critical infrastructure have instead committed severe human rights abuses against the very people of the state.

According to Wariyei, the situation has escalated into a reign of terror, with claims that the security contractors are operating private detention facilities. He stated that several Bayelsa residents have been illegally abducted and held in these private prisons for over two years, leaving grieving families in deep distress over the fate of their missing loved ones.

Among those allegedly targeted is a local subcontractor, Charles Korubo. Chief Wariyei explained that Korubo was abducted and taken to a private detention center after refusing to follow orders from the main contractor that fell outside his official job mandate.

Expressing the growing frustration of the people, Wariyei declared that the residents of Bayelsa have reached their breaking point and will no longer tolerate such atrocities, kidnappings, and extrajudicial actions within their land and riverine communities.

He urged President Tinubu to restructure the surveillance framework so that each state in the Niger Delta manages its own territory.

Allowing Bayelsa residents and other regional groups to secure their own respective terrains, he argued, is the only sustainable path to ending conflict and ensuring genuine stability.

The appeal highlights widespread reports across the region accusing prominent security outfits, specifically Tantita Security Services and Maton Engineering, owned by Government Ekpemupolo (Tompolo) and Matthew Tonlagha, of involvement in severe abuses, including illegal arrests, running of private prison, and violent enforcement and murder.

Chief Wariyei emphasized that the people of Bayelsa and neighboring areas no longer want these specific companies operating in their communities, demanding an immediate shift toward local ownership of security operations.