The new militant group operating in the oil-rich region of southern Nigeria, the Niger Delta Avengers has opened a can of worms over Nigeria’s secret police’s claim to have arrested some of its members.
The Department for State Security Services, DSS, issued a statement on Friday, July 1, 2016 claiming that the arrested two key members of the Niger Delta Avengers identified as Selky Kile Torughedi and Christian Oluba alias Sensor. According to the DSS, it averted attacks on oil pipelines and also foiled an assassination plot on a military officer in Kaduna allegedly plotted by Selky.
But the Niger Delta Avengers has refuted the DSS claim saying that the person named in the press release were actually “sleeper agents” planted by the DSS to infiltrate the Avengers and frustrate its campaign against oil production in the country.
The statement on Saturday, July 2, 2016, signed by Brigadier General Mudoch Agbinibo, the Avengers’ spokesperson said that the DSS claims are laughable. “Reports from national dailies that two suspects Mr .Christian Oluba alias Sensor, and Selky Kile Torughedi arrested by DSS are alleged members of Niger Delta Avengers is laughable,” Agbinibo said. “The fact is they are sleeper agents of the DSS sent after the Niger Delta Avengers.”
“The boys has the right to demand for their money from DSS, why not pay them instead of arresting and labeling them as Niger Delta Avengers members.
“If DSS are denying this, let them allow the suspects to speak to the press. We, Niger Delta Avengers, don’t have any connection with these boys.
“We dare the DSS to allow the boys to tell the world their side of the story.
“DSS and Nigerian Army can’t win the Niger Delta war by feeding their president with false information about situation of things in the region.
“It’s all-good because as it seems the DSS is now having internal crisis with most of their sleeper agents and it a sign that God is on our side.
“There are problem in the Niger Delta region such as underdevelopment, environmental degradation, lack of infrastructure and the issue of self-determination. These are the areas Mr. President should focus on, not arresting their allies and linking them to Niger Delta Avengers,” the statement said.
The Niger Delta Avengers also tackled the director-general of the DSS, Lawal Daura, a kinsman of President Muhammadu Buhari saying that he should commit telling the truth to Nigerians, especially in the month of Ramadan.
“This is to DSS Director Lawal Daura, this the holy month of Ramadan and as a Muslim you hold it to Allah and the Nigeria people to say the truth. Why not come out with the truth.
“To the Nigerian press, there is always two sides to a story. Why not try to get the other side of the story by interviewing the boys?
“The Nigerian army will never get us, Niger Delta Avengers, let them go and settle with their sleeper agents and stop deceiving the general public and their president,” the statement added.
