An
unidentified militant group in the Niger Delta region on Tuesday blew up a
crude oil trunkline in Ughelli, Delta State, barely 24 hours after
Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo led a Federal Government delegation to the area in
search of peace.
Osinbajo,
accompanied by the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu; and the
Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Gen. Paul Boroh, had on
Monday visited the traditional ruler of Gbaramatu Kingdom, the Olu of Warri and
a cross-session of traditional rulers drawn from Urhobo, Isoko and Ndokwa
ethnic nationalities at the PTI Conference Centre.
An
unidentified militant group in the Niger Delta region on Tuesday blew up a
crude oil trunkline in Ughelli, Delta State, barely 24 hours after
Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo led a Federal Government delegation to the area in
search of peace.
Osinbajo,
accompanied by the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu; and the
Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Gen. Paul Boroh, had on
Monday visited the traditional ruler of Gbaramatu Kingdom, the Olu of Warri and
a cross-session of traditional rulers drawn from Urhobo, Isoko and Ndokwa
ethnic nationalities at the PTI Conference Centre.
The
attack, which occurred at about 4.35pm behind the SETRACO construction yard
along the East/West Express Road in Ughelli, in Ughelli North Local Government,
was said not to be unconnected with the alleged ill-treatment and disregard for
some monarchs in the state during the Federal Government delegation visit.
The
pipeline, operated by the Nigeria Petroleum Development Company, was still in
flames as of 7pm when our correspondent left Ughelli, the scene of the attack,
for Warri on Tuesday.
Although
security sources in the state confirmed the attack under the condition of
anonymity, none of them could confirm the true cause of the incident.
They
stressed that they were mobilising in collaboration with the Delta State Fire
Service in the area to put out the inferno.
However,
another military source dismissed the claim that militants were responsible for
the attack, noting that indiscriminate bush burning was responsible for the
inferno.
When contacted on the incident, the spokesperson for the Joint Task Force
code-named Operation Delta Safe, Lt. Col. Olaolu Daudu, could not immediately
confirm the incident.
Source:Punch
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