Militants in the Niger Delta at the weekend vowed to inflict serious damage on the operations of ExxonMobil if the company fails to compensate victims of the 1998 devastating oil spill after the expiration of a 21-day ultimatum.
The renewed threat followed what the militants termed the arrogant posture of the company over the payment of compensation to the victims of the Idoho oil spill that ravaged the entire Niger Delta region.
The expected attack, code named �Operation Black Mamba�, according to them, would ground the operations of the company this month. �We shall go after every ExxonMobil�s operation in the Niger Delta without mercy. We shall bring to naught the fullness of their operations in the Niger Delta with frenzy,� the militants stated.
They had earlier written to the company to compensate the victims but ExxonMobil had asked them to initiate processes in line with due process rather than use force.
Spokesperson for the militant Martyrs Brigade, Cynthia Whyte, in statement online urged the company not to regard the ultimatum as an empty threat, adding that youths in the region would no longer condone any acts of irresponsibility from oil multinationals.
�If ExxonMobil refuses to honor its obligation to the victims of the 1998 oil spillage, we shall unleash a festival of carnage on all their operations in the Niger Delta,� the group said, describing its position as the final word.
The statement said militant groups in the region were building synergies and building partnerships to challenge the old ways of gross neglect of the region, describing the initiative as community-driven and bottom-up approach.
The militants said with the new initiative in place, exploited communities now have an open option to resort to strategic militancy to get their wishes done as a last resort and as a way of taking their destiny in their hands.
The group, however, denounced any link with terrorist groups or a network such as Al-Qaeda, explaining that its current armed campaigns were genuine attempts by a neglected, oppressed and subjugated people to mete out justice to their oppressors.
�We do not need the assistance of any terrorist network to get the job done. The anger in our hearts and the loss and theft of our livelihoods and resources is good enough motivation. We owe no allegiance to any terrorist organisation,� the statement added, explaining that the operations were in line with the doctrine and belief of its detained leader, Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari.