SAN FRANCISCO, September 19, (THEWILL) – A notorious criminal described as the ‘most wanted’ kidnapping gang leader in Delta State has threatened to shut down oil wells operated by Shell,Chevron and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in Urhobo land if the Federal Government fails to accede to the demands of his group within 60 days.
The demands, according to him, include the development of his community by the Federal Government and the granting of amnesty to him and his boys.
The gang leader, popularly known as Kelvin, issued the threat on Wednesday as he displayed his newly-acquired weapons of destruction.
Describing himself as a freedom fighter on a mission to liberate his people, Kelvin, who has been declared wanted by the police for several high profile kidnapping cases in the state, boasted that the sophisticated weapons would be deployed in deadly attacks on oil installations in Kokori, Ethiope East Local Government Area of the state at the expiration of the two months ultimatum .
The criminal, who has been evading arrest following intensive manhunt for him in the past two months, was said to have killed two soldiers in Isiokolo recently after he opened fire on an army checking point. He was also said to have killed several police officers and officials of the Nigeria Prisons Service.
Kelvin’s home in Kokori was recently destroyed by the police during a raid of the community believed to be the headquarters of the notorious kidnapping business in the state.
Currently operating from an unknown hideout apparently with the protection of community, he threatened on Monday to blow up the oil wells and disrupt production if the Federal Government fails to develop his community which, he alleged has been neglected despite being one of the largest oil producing areas in the country.
The gang leader and his foot-soldiers who put on masks to cover their faces said it would be wrong for anybody to brand him as a kidnapper, saying what his group wants is to draw the attention of the world to the alleged neglect of Kokori community by the Federal Government.
He said, “For over 50 years, they have been exploiting our land in the guise of oil exploration with nothing to show for it in terms of development. There are no good roads, no industries for the youths to work, our women and mothers cannot farm again because of the devastating effect of the oil exploration on our land.
“Fifty years of oil exploration has left our men prostrate without no meaningful source of livelihood. Most of them can no longer fend for their families and all attempts to draw the attention of the State Government and the Federal Government of Nigeria to the plight of the community have been greeted by repression, so we have no other alternative than to bear arms against the nation in order to drive home our demands since the only language Nigeria understands is violence.
“When the Ijaws and Itsekiris were agitating with arms, we the Urhobo youths chose to be peaceful, but what did we get? We are rather left out completely in the amnesty programme. Is it not the same oil that the Ijaws and Itsekiris produce that is also produced in Kokori, which has the second best oil in Nigeria: So what is our crime?”
He maintained that the relative peace in Delta State should not be attributed to the effort of the Joint Task Force (JTF), saying his people had decided to give the Federal and State Government time to act.
He warned that if by the end of the 60 days ultimatum nothing meaningful is done, his militia group would launch the deadly attacks on facilities owned by Shell,Chevron and NNPC.
“We wanted to draw the attention of the Federal and State Governments and we believe now that we have drawn the attention of the Federal and State Government, the government must listen to us because while Boko Haram will be destroying in the north, we will be destroying from this way.
“We will destroy all the well heads in the whole of Urhobo nation, not only in Kokori after the expiration of the 60 days ultimatum. Then the Federal Government will know that we don’t make empty threats. But we will remain calm within the next 60 days, but if they think we cannot do anything , then they will hear from us after the expiration of the 60 days ultimatum.
“After this 60 days ultimatum, if we do not see any meaningful attempt by the authorities to address our plight, we would shut down all oil facilities in Urhobo land and there is no amount of security personnel that can stop us.
“We would strike decisively and promptly with a devastating effect. This is not an empty threat as our people are behind us in this struggle, because to fear is to die many times. We have to take our destiny into our hands, since the Nigeria nation has failed us,” he stated.
Kelvin issued the warning amid It cheering by thousands of his community people mainly women and youths, who had gathered to hail him and his gang as they displayed their armoury in the community.
Craving anonymity, a resident of the community, who was the event, said: “We are here today because Kokori is suffering. There are no jobs for the youths, graduates whom their parents borrowed money to see through their tertiary education roam the streets with nothing to do and business have been very slow for our market women because there is no flow of income.
“What we want the government to do is to build schools, hospitals, banks and cottage industries that can employ the men and teeming youths of the community.”
A representative of the women in the community also expressed support for the criminal gang. “We thank God for using our son, Kelvin, to fight for our cause. He is not a criminal, as the government of Delta State wants the world to believe. He and his group are fighting for what is just, equitable and legitimate. Therefore, he should not be given a bad name.
“If the government had provided jobs for these youths and our husbands, would they take up arms to ask for what rightly belongs to them? Where the oil is found in Kokori, the land belongs to Kelvin’s grandfather and yet the family has nothing to show for over 50 years of oil exploration. Is this not injustice?,” she stated.
