– Urges president to intervene over four-month salary delay
Sylvester Idowu in Warri
The leadership of the Host Communities of Nigeria Producing Oil and Gas (HOSCON) has alleged moves by some influential cabals in the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to frustrate the operations of the Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL).
The group alleged that the frustrating moves by the cabals in the Nigerian oil company has led to alleged non-payment of four months’ salaries to staff and subcontractors of Tantita Security Nigeria Limited, warning that the development could trigger industrial unrest and undermine efforts to safeguard Nigeria’s oil and gas assets.
HOSCON, in a petition addressed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, dated June 20, 2026 and signed by the Ovie of Idjerhe Kingdom, His Royal Majesty Obukowho Monday Whiskey, Udurhie I, who also serves as Chairman of the HOSCON Traditional Rulers and Elders Advisory Council of Nigeria issued yesterday warned on the consequences of frustrating the operations of TSSNL in the Niger Delta region.
The group maintained that some “influential cabals” within the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited were deliberately frustrating the operations of Tantita Security by delaying payments for services already rendered.
It stated that the prolonged salary delay has created widespread dissatisfaction among workers and subcontractors, with reports of threats to embark on industrial action if the situation is not urgently addressed.
The group claimed that intelligence available to HOSCON suggested that individuals who previously benefited from crude oil theft were adopting new tactics to weaken Tantita Security by starving the company of operational funding after failing to continue illegal bunkering activities in the Niger Delta.
HOSCON described the alleged move as a calculated attempt to destabilise pipeline surveillance operations, stressing that the sacrifices made by Tantita Security in combating crude oil theft should not be undermined by vested interests.
It appealed to President Tinubu to immediately investigate the allegations and ensure prompt payment to avert what he described as a looming crisis in the oil-producing region.
The HOSCON leaders commended Tantita Security for what they described as its professionalism and effectiveness in protecting critical oil infrastructure, noting that environmental degradation and crude oil theft had significantly reduced since the company’s engagement.
It warned that any attempt to reverse the progress recorded in securing oil facilities and restoring the Niger Delta environment would be strongly resisted by host communities.
The petition further urged the federal government to accord pipeline surveillance operations greater priority in national budgetary allocations, arguing that assignments of such strategic national importance should not be subjected to bureaucratic delays or the influence of vested interests.
HOSCON maintained it would continue to expose any actions capable of frustrating the success of the pipeline surveillance initiative, while calling on the management of NNPC Limited and all patriotic Nigerians to support organisations working to protect the nation’s oil and gas assets.
The petition read thus “We the leadership of the Host Communities of Nigeria (HOSCON) Producing Oil & Gas write to specifically draw your attention to a well-planned and orchestrated plot by some influential cabals at the Nigeria National Petroluem Company Ltd to deliberately cause disorder in the Niger Delta.
“Our intelligence from highly placed sources both in Abuja and across the Niger Delta is that since the Oil cabals/bunkerers can no longer have their way in stealing Crude oil in the region they have perfected a new approach by deliberately starving the authorities of the hardworking Tantita Security Nigeria Limited of regular funding and thus creating unnecessary salaries delay and other operational activities been carried out in the day to day activities of the Oil pipeline Security giant.
“As a result, staff and subcontractors of the organization have not been paid for almost four months running, thereby causing grumbling and threats to down tools by workers”, it added.
“HOSCON strongly condemned the alleged new plots expressing the believe that it cannot be true as a result of the sacrifices/risk that the authorities of TSSNL has taken to get to where they are will be made useless by some selfish cabals who do not mean for our country.
“We trust that as a father of the nation, this findings by the leadership of the oil and gas production communities in the country will be given very serious attention, as delaying actions could be an invitation to avoidable crisis.
“No interest of individuals or groups can be more important than that of the entire country. The leadership of The Host Communities of Nigeria (HOSCON) Producing Oil & Gas will keep exposing all the under hand working against the success of this all-important project”, it added.
