Tompolo and Tantita Security Services invade and Burnt down Itsekiri Communities says Armani Asiwaju, Indigene of Omadino Community

Report reaching NigerDelta Vanguard Is that agents allegedly operating under the directive of High Chief Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, and wearing the uniform of Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, have carried out a series of violent and unlawful attacks against Itsekiri communities in Warri Kingdom, Delta State.

According to eyewitness reports and video evidence, the Akpata Community, a significant and historical settlement under the Omadino Federated Communities, was recently set ablaze. This devastating act, purportedly carried out by men in Tantita uniforms, is not the first of its kind. A second Itsekiri community, known as Jelube, was also reportedly destroyed in similar fashion.

The Akpata Community holds immense spiritual and cultural importance to the Itsekiri people. It was founded by our revered ancestor, Jaye, and it is the sacred dwelling place of our powerful deity, Ogheye Akpata, who traditionally emerges from this location. This area is considered the spiritual power base of Omadino and its desecration is not only a cultural violation, but a provocation against the entire Itsekiri Nation.

It is critical to state unequivocally: the Itsekiri people do not burn down their own communities. Any such suggestion is not only baseless but malicious. These attacks represent a pattern of intimidation and aggression aimed at redrawing ethnic boundaries by force. The false narrative being pushed by certain ethnic-biased media outlets, most notably Gbaramatu Voice, a known Ijaw propaganda platform, serves only to escalate tensions and incite conflict in an already fragile region.

These actions follow a troubling statement made by Tompolo during his 54th birthday celebration, wherein he falsely declared that Omadino and Obodo are Ijaw lands. This assertion is a direct affront to the historical facts and ancestral rights of the Itsekiri people, and it is being used to justify what we view as an orchestrated land-grabbing campaign under the guise of security operations.

We are therefore calling on the Federal Government of Nigeria, under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to take the following urgent actions:

1. Revoke the pipeline surveillance contract awarded to Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, which is being grossly abused to carry out ethnic aggression and unlawful occupation of ancestral lands.

2. Launch an immediate and impartial investigation into the burning of Akpata and Jelube communities, and hold all perpetrators accountable, regardless of status or affiliations.

3. Arrest and prosecute Government Ekpemupolo (Tompolo) for his alleged role in orchestrating these attacks and using a government security contract for personal and ethnic expansionist agendas.

We must also draw national and international attention to recent threats made on social media platforms, including TikTok, by Ijaw youths who openly vowed to burn down all Itsekiri communities, as well as extend their attacks to Lagos and Ondo States. These threats are not idle. They are already being carried out, as demonstrated by the destruction of our communities in Akpata and jelube. The relevant security agencies must treat these statements as credible threats of terrorism and act accordingly.

Let it be known that the Itsekiri Nation is peace-loving, law-abiding, and historically accommodating. However, we will not tolerate the continued destruction of our lands, the desecration of our sacred sites, and the false rewriting of our heritage.

We call on all well-meaning Nigerians, traditional institutions, international observers, and human rights organizations to condemn these acts and stand with the truth in protecting the ancestral rights of the Itsekiri people says Hon Armani Asiwaju.