Mohammed O. Taoheed reports,
An Egbesu popular priest, Apostle Bodmas Kemepadei, has urged the immediate past President of National Association of Itsekiri Graduates and Leader, Edema Oritsetimeyin, to be wary of making inflammatory comments against Chief Ekpemupolo Tompolo over the surveillance contract.
This follows as two groups in Edo State, Safe Edo Land and 3rd Phase of Amnesty Group have commended President Muhammadu Buhari for giving the pipelines surveillance contract to Tompolo.
Kemepadei issued the cautioned in a statement, yesterday, in Warri in response to a recent newspaper publication credited to Oritsetimeyin on the surveillance contract.
The words of the priest: “Let me react to your misleading, demeaning and misconstrued sponsored reports trending in some national dailies.
“Oritsetimeyin statements are similar to that of someone who had wandered very far from home, exhibiting traits of frustration, who should be called to order for unscrupulous attempt to ignite an ethnic crisis.
“First and foremost, inform your sender that he who comes to equity must come with clean hands, the reports contained in the national dailies are cheap, petty and tantamount to misinform and divert public attention.
“For the records, there is no public record of Tompolo issuing any statement linking the Olu of Warri to any pipeline surveillance job, why then the baseless attempt to drag Tompolo’s name into unnecessary quarrel.”
The Egbesu Priest told all companies handling this surveillance job to emulate the kind gesture of Tompolo and extend their hands to youths, women and leaders of Niger Delta .
Edo groups back Tompolo
Rising from a meeting in Benin City, Edo State led by their leaders, Osasere Ohonba and ‘General’ Peter Edah, stressed that by picking Tompolo to handle the pipelines surveillance contract, President Buhari has shown that he is a man who can take very useful decisions that he knows would be of benefit to the generality of Nigerians regardless of status.
According to them: “We wish to make it clear that President Buhari’s decision to hand over the pipelines surveillance contract to Tompolo has shown that he is a man who can take whatever decisions that in his wisdom he feels would be of benefit to the generality of Nigerians irrespective of status.
“That Tompolo got the contract is a big plus considering his pedigree and the fact that he is versed in the issues of the security surrounding the whole gamut of oil pipelines that transverse the length and breadth of the country.”
“Not only that, Tompolo has the right temperament to reach out to all the different groups and individuals in the communities bearing oil facilities/installations. His very humane approach in promising to ensure that all interests benefit from what accrues via the contract award is worth mentioning.”
