By Egufe Yafugborhi & Ochuko Akuopha
ASABA — The Niger Delta Concerned Stakeholders for Accountable Security and Progress have clarified that TANTITA Security Services’ surveillance drones are meant to boost the fight against oil theft and asset vandalism, and not to instigate ethnic tension.
The stakeholders, in a statement by Enisuo Oruomoni, made the clarification in response to claims by some individuals and groups that the drones would be deployed to aid ethnic battles.
Oruomoni noted that illegal oil bunkering syndicates changed tactics after drones began exposing vessels and illegal refineries “in real time” in the creeks.
He stated, “TANTITA drones are protecting Nigeria, not targeting ethnicities. Niger Delta people support technology that stops theft. Drones were approved by the federal government, not TANTITA alone.
“Every flight plan, coverage area, and operational data is shared with security agencies. The Nigerian state is in charge. The drones belong to Nigeria’s fight against economic sabotage.
“The real tension is crude theft, not surveillance. For decades, Niger Delta communities have fought, been displaced, and polluted because bunkering syndicates operate with impunity.”
On ethnic suspicions, he explained, “A drone does not ask ‘is this Ijaw land or Itsekiri land?’ It asks ‘is this an illegal vessel stealing Nigeria’s oil?’ Technology is neutral. The enemy of the drone is the thief, not any ethnic group.
“Host communities are the biggest winners of drone surveillance, with over 20,000 youths from host communities across Ijaw, Itsekiri, Urhobo, Isoko, Ogoni, Andoni and Ilaje territories employed in control rooms.
“We reject calls to ‘pause’ or ‘decentralise’ drones at the exact moment they are catching thieves. That is like asking police to remove CCTV while armed robbers are on camera.”
