Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited faces scrutiny over Niger Delta surveillance contracts

Stakeholders in the Niger Delta are addressing controversies surrounding Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL) and its Managing Director, Osahon Okunbo, regarding pipeline surveillance contracts.

Investigative journalist Fejiro Oliver, representing the Guard Your Pipeline and I Guard My Own Movement, clarified that his campaign for the decentralization of surveillance contracts is driven by demands for equitable distribution among oil-producing communities rather than ethnic interests. Oliver argued that the Petroleum Industry Act supports a more inclusive approach to opportunities in these areas, questioning the concentration of contracts worth approximately N2.1 trillion among a limited number of firms.

Concurrently, the Niger Delta Ambassadors for Good Governance (NDAGG) has cautioned against attacks on PINL. The group stated that the House of Representatives Committee on Host Communities has cleared PINL and Okunbo of allegations regarding financial recklessness and ineffectiveness. NDAGG emphasized that PINL’s operations contribute to employment, economic empowerment, and community development for Ijaw communities and various socio-cultural organizations.