TD Niger Delta activist and social commentator Fejiro Oliver has challenged recent claims by former militant leader Asari Dokubo over the value and beneficiaries of Nigeria’s pipeline surveillance contracts, insisting that the figures being circulated about Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL) are inaccurate.
In a statement published on Tuesday, Oliver claimed that he was responsible for bringing the larger value of the pipeline surveillance arrangements to public attention after obtaining what he described as contract documents showing payments substantially above the ₦48 billion annually widely reported when the Federal Government awarded the surveillance contract to Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited in 2022.
Public reports at the time put the Tantita contract at ₦48 billion annually, or approximately ₦4 billion monthly.
Oliver said his review of the documents showed that Tantita receives about ₦2.1 trillion for the Western Corridor, a figure he said prompted his earlier public campaign over the pipeline surveillance arrangement.
He also claimed that the contracts involved several companies, including Tantita, Maton Engineering and PINL.
Oliver rejects ₦2.7 trillion figure attributed to PINL
Reacting specifically to Dokubo’s recent allegation that the Olu of Warri and Osahon Okunbo are connected to a ₦2.7 trillion annual pipeline surveillance arrangement, Oliver said the figure did not correspond with the documents in his possession.
According to him, PINL receives less than ₦1 trillion annually for its role in the Eastern Corridor and works with more than 100 subcontractors that share the funds.
“PINL that is controlled by Osahon Okunbo through PINL do not collect any N2.7 trillion and I challenge anyone to counter it with facts and documents,” Oliver said.
Dokubo had alleged that the Olu of Warri and Osahon, identified in reports as Osahon Okunbo, receive ₦2.7 trillion annually for pipeline protection. However, the allegation has not been accompanied by publicly released contract or payment documents.
The Olu of Warri’s representative has separately rejected the allegation and challenged Dokubo to produce documentary evidence supporting the ₦2.7 trillion claim.
‘Contract should remain in Niger Delta’
Oliver said his position was not that pipeline surveillance contracts should be removed from existing Niger Delta operators.
Instead, he advocated retaining the contracts within the region while expanding participation among communities and companies across the Niger Delta.
He said he had concerns about some of the existing contractors, including Tantita and Maton Engineering, but argued that transferring the contracts outside the region would not address the underlying issues.
Oliver also criticised what he described as the distribution of portions of the pipeline surveillance proceeds to political interests outside the Niger Delta, alleging that some funds were being channelled towards political activities.
He argued that the economic benefits of pipeline surveillance should be distributed more broadly among Niger Delta communities.
Oliver raises fresh allegation over ‘supervisor’ contract
Oliver further alleged that another Edo-based company owned by an individual he identified as Peter Black receives approximately ₦100 billion annually for what he described as a supervisory role in the pipeline surveillance arrangement.
He did not provide the alleged contract or payment documentation in the statement but said he would release more information in a subsequent publication.
“I will discuss this in subsequent series,” he said.
The allegation could not be independently verified from publicly available records reviewed for this report.
Pipeline surveillance contracts under renewed scrutiny
The dispute comes amid renewed public attention to the cost, structure and beneficiaries of Nigeria’s pipeline surveillance arrangements.
The original ₦48 billion annual Tantita contract became a subject of national debate after its award in 2022, with lawmakers subsequently defending the arrangement and citing its contribution to reducing attacks on oil infrastructure.
More recent reports have placed the broader pipeline surveillance arrangement at approximately ₦2.1 trillion, although the precise breakdown of payments among contractors and subcontractors has not been comprehensively established through publicly accessible contract documents.
The latest controversy therefore centres not only on the size of the contracts but also on which companies receive the funds, how the money is distributed among subcontractors and whether the contractual arrangements should be disclosed publicly.
For now, the competing figures remain disputed. Oliver says his documents establish a ₦2.1 trillion allocation to Tantita and less than ₦1 trillion to PINL, while Dokubo has alleged a ₦2.7 trillion annual arrangement involving the Olu of Warri and Osahon Okunbo. The Olu of Warri’s representatives have rejected Dokubo’s allegation and demanded evidence.
