Founder of the O’dua Peoples Congress, Dr. Fredrick Fasehun; a former Niger Delta militant leader, Mujahid Dokubo-Asari; and four others, who were awarded a three-month pipeline surveillance contract by the Federal Government, have demanded their settlement from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.
In a joint statement issued on Monday, the contractors said failure of the NNPC to remit the payments by the end of August would result in a lawsuit against the corporation.
The companies attached to the deal were given as New Age Nigeria Limited (Fasehun), Donyx Global Concept Ltd. (Gani Adams), Gallery Security Services Ltd. (Bibo Pere Ajube), Bajeros Nigeria Ltd. (Joshua Machiever), Close Body Protection Ltd., ATEF Nigeria Ltd. (Asari-Dokubo), and Izon Ibe Security Ltd.
The statement read, “Rising from a meeting, held on Friday, August 14, 2015, at the Signature Building, Eko Hotel and Suite, Victoria Island, Lagos, we, the NNPC Pipeline Security and Surveillance service providers, have unanimously resolved to write the management of the NNPC on the need to settle its indebtedness to the contractors.
“We would like to use this opportunity to set the records straight for the good of the public. It should be known that the contractors had valid and duly signed contract agreements with the management of the NNPC to protect the pipelines for a period of three months. Up untill now, the public perception of the NNPC Pipeline Security and Surveillance job was that former President Goodluck Jonathan gave the job to the contractors on the alter of politics.
“But nothing can be farther from the truth. It is necessary for the public to know that against widely held belief, that the contract was terminated by the Federal Government; the contract indeed ran its course, which was a period of three months, starting from March 15, 2015 and ended on June 15, 2015.”
According to the statement, the contract was signed by the contractors and the management of the NNPC as a way of finding lasting solutions to the incessant problem of pipeline vandalism across the country.
It added that the terms and agreements of the contract were formulated and drafted by the management of the NNPC and was duly signed by all the parties, including the contractors and the legal department of the NNPC after several meetings and consultations.
It stated, “It is our belief that the contract agreement between the NNPC and the contractors is a public document and therefore can always be accessed by any member of public. At the same time, what we are demanding from the NNPC is for it to redeem its own part of the contract agreement and should not be seen as a favour and handout to any individual.
“By this, we have resolved that by the end of this month(August), if the NNPC fails to redeem its contractual obligation and refuse to pay us, we would be left with no choice but to take them to court , an action which we think may not do the credibility of the government any good because it is a case based on contractual agreement that was legally signed by a parastatal of government
