Militants under the aegis of the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate (NDGJM) claimed on Thursday an attack on a crude pipeline operated by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

The facility was attacked at 01:00am early this morning in the restive Niger Delta, a Business Day report said.

It quoted a statement by NPDC Spokesperson, Aldo Agbalaja, as saying that the group had blown up the Unenurhie-Evwreni pipeline “to prove to the wicked and ungrateful multinational oil companies and their Nigerian military allies that we own our lands.”

The statement went on to say that he attacks were going to continue if the oil companies and the government continued to fail to do right by the Niger Deltans in terms of infrastructural development and welfare.

“This will only stop when you turn a new leaf, adopt a sincere attitude, give back to our people what naturally should be theirs, advise the government rightly, stop thinking there’s an army to protect you from justice, do these and all that you know are good. If you do these, be assured to have a good relationship with our people and real protection for your personnel and assets across our lands,” the statement continued.

The report noted that militant attacks on various oil infrastructures in the Niger Delta have drastically reduced oil production, cutting down revenue generated by the oil sector on which the nation largely depends.

•Photo shows Niger Delta militants.

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