The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, has announced that it has blown up two major pipelines in Kula, on the fringes of the Atlantic Ocean in Asari Toru local government area, and the one in Rumuekpe in Emohua local government area of Rivers State.

According to a terse statement issued by the spokesman of the militant group, Jomo Gbomo, the latest attack is “in keeping with our pledge to resume pipeline attacks within the next thirty days.”

advertisement

He added that “detonation engineers backed by heavily armed fighters from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) today, Monday, July 28,  at about 0115 Hrs  sabotaged two major pipelines in Rivers state of Nigeria.

“The first pipeline is located in Kula which has been previously sabotaged by us and the second in Rumuekpe both belonging, we believe, to the Shell Petroleum Development Company.”

Jomo Gbomo did not give further details about the attacks which will hurt oil exploration activities in the Niger Delta.

MEND was angered last week by a report credited to Abubakar Yar’Adua, the Group Managing Director of NNPC, who said that NNPC has paid 12 miliion Dollars to militants to protect Chanomi pipeline earlier sabotaged by militants.

Although Yar’Adua later denied, it was not convincing enough to MEND which mentioned that NNPC was paying the money to bandits who share it with some top officials in the Delta State government, Aso rock, NNPCand JTF in Delta state.

However, neither shell nor NNPC confirmed the attack at press time. . Frequent attacks on oil facilities in the restive region has shot up the prices of petroleum products worldwide.

 

 

-------------------------------------------------------------