What's New In W. Africa (Nigeria)
Join Date: Jul 2004
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Hi Mama,
Another new manager who skims off the funds allocated from the oil companies contract. Lives a life of privilege and salts away as much of the money into his own personal account as humanly possible. I thought that's what colonial administrators where supposed to do? Until the Oil Companies demand some accountability from their contractors the same old situation will not change. Sad part is many of the oil company executives are busy doing the same thing. The aviation managers of the past who have moved up the chain of command did the same little trick! So you know they don't want to rock the boat. Better to just be quiet and retire to the South of France.
Best of luck to those who remain. Hope God smiles and at least keeps you safe!
Cheers,
Musket33
Another new manager who skims off the funds allocated from the oil companies contract. Lives a life of privilege and salts away as much of the money into his own personal account as humanly possible. I thought that's what colonial administrators where supposed to do? Until the Oil Companies demand some accountability from their contractors the same old situation will not change. Sad part is many of the oil company executives are busy doing the same thing. The aviation managers of the past who have moved up the chain of command did the same little trick! So you know they don't want to rock the boat. Better to just be quiet and retire to the South of France.
Best of luck to those who remain. Hope God smiles and at least keeps you safe!
Cheers,
Musket33
More threats by the Insurgents
Nigerian militants threaten to halve oil output By Tom Ashby
Sun Mar 5, 10:50 AM ET
Nigerian militants threatened on Sunday to halve the country's current oil output by cutting another 1 million barrels a day this month in their campaign to gain more autonomy for the southern delta region.
The militants from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta are holding two U.S. hostages and one Briton. Their attacks last month reduced output from the world's eighth largest exporter by 455,000 barrels a day, or one fifth.
This lowered output to 2 million barrels a day before the latest threat by the militants, who want more local control of the delta's oil resources.
"God willing we hope to reduce Nigeria's export by a further one million barrels for the month of March," the militants said in an email.
Royal Dutch Shell has shut down its oilfields on the western side of the Niger Delta, a vast maze of mangrove-lined creeks in southern Nigeria, after a string of bombings and kidnappings on February 18.
The militants had threatened to shut 30 percent of exports in February.
"There will be inland operations in March as well as standard creek attacks," the militants said.
Most of Nigeria's remaining production comes from the eastern side of the delta where Shell, U.S. giants ExxonMobil and Chevron, Italy's Agip and France's Total operate fields.
Two abandoned oil pipeline junctions operated by Shell in the western delta were attacked by unidentified saboteurs on Saturday, but output was unaffected because the area had already been evacuated, military and industry sources said.
DEMANDS
The militants have demanded the release of two ethnic Ijaw leaders, compensation for oil pollution to delta villages and more autonomy over the region's huge oil income.
The Ijaw are the dominant tribe in the delta, where impoverished fishing villages play host to a multi-billion-dollar export industry.
Sabotage, kidnapping and ethnic killings have been common features of the Niger Delta for years, but diplomats say this new movement is better organized, better armed and has a more overtly political agenda than previous such groups.
The government has called them oil thieves, but they have accused government and security officials of being complicit in the trade of stolen oil from Nigeria, worth hundreds of millions of dollars every year.
Analysts say the upsurge in violence is also linked to escalating regional rivalry in Nigeria ahead of elections next year, when one civilian leader is due to hand power to another for the first time in Nigeria's 47 years of independence.
Supporters of President Olusegun Obasanjo are lobbying to amend the constitution and let the former military ruler, an ethnic Yoruba from the south-west, to run for a third term.
This is opposed by many politicians from other geo-political zones in Nigeria, including the delta, who want a stab at power themselves. It is also unpopular in the north, where at least 100 people were killed in rioting last month.
Rampant corruption in government has fueled distrust and rivalry between tribes and regions in Nigeria, where political office comes with discretionary power over billions of dollars in oil revenue.
Ijaw activists say the attacks will encourage other regions to take their decades-long fight for more autonomy seriously at a time when the constitutional provision on wealth distribution is also under review.
Sun Mar 5, 10:50 AM ET
Nigerian militants threatened on Sunday to halve the country's current oil output by cutting another 1 million barrels a day this month in their campaign to gain more autonomy for the southern delta region.
The militants from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta are holding two U.S. hostages and one Briton. Their attacks last month reduced output from the world's eighth largest exporter by 455,000 barrels a day, or one fifth.
This lowered output to 2 million barrels a day before the latest threat by the militants, who want more local control of the delta's oil resources.
"God willing we hope to reduce Nigeria's export by a further one million barrels for the month of March," the militants said in an email.
Royal Dutch Shell has shut down its oilfields on the western side of the Niger Delta, a vast maze of mangrove-lined creeks in southern Nigeria, after a string of bombings and kidnappings on February 18.
The militants had threatened to shut 30 percent of exports in February.
"There will be inland operations in March as well as standard creek attacks," the militants said.
Most of Nigeria's remaining production comes from the eastern side of the delta where Shell, U.S. giants ExxonMobil and Chevron, Italy's Agip and France's Total operate fields.
Two abandoned oil pipeline junctions operated by Shell in the western delta were attacked by unidentified saboteurs on Saturday, but output was unaffected because the area had already been evacuated, military and industry sources said.
DEMANDS
The militants have demanded the release of two ethnic Ijaw leaders, compensation for oil pollution to delta villages and more autonomy over the region's huge oil income.
The Ijaw are the dominant tribe in the delta, where impoverished fishing villages play host to a multi-billion-dollar export industry.
Sabotage, kidnapping and ethnic killings have been common features of the Niger Delta for years, but diplomats say this new movement is better organized, better armed and has a more overtly political agenda than previous such groups.
The government has called them oil thieves, but they have accused government and security officials of being complicit in the trade of stolen oil from Nigeria, worth hundreds of millions of dollars every year.
Analysts say the upsurge in violence is also linked to escalating regional rivalry in Nigeria ahead of elections next year, when one civilian leader is due to hand power to another for the first time in Nigeria's 47 years of independence.
Supporters of President Olusegun Obasanjo are lobbying to amend the constitution and let the former military ruler, an ethnic Yoruba from the south-west, to run for a third term.
This is opposed by many politicians from other geo-political zones in Nigeria, including the delta, who want a stab at power themselves. It is also unpopular in the north, where at least 100 people were killed in rioting last month.
Rampant corruption in government has fueled distrust and rivalry between tribes and regions in Nigeria, where political office comes with discretionary power over billions of dollars in oil revenue.
Ijaw activists say the attacks will encourage other regions to take their decades-long fight for more autonomy seriously at a time when the constitutional provision on wealth distribution is also under review.
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"...standard creek attacks"? I wonder if propper speed boat operation procedures are in place.
Approach oil istallation (flow station, crane barge, house boat) at twin engine MCP, keeping up the speed at 42 kts until within 50' target range. At this point bring one engine back to float idle and start shooting simultanously. Wait for 10 seconds, when fire returned from station is more than what you expect, turn away from target as per approach briefing and go around. If no or little resistance (security agents still in bed, at breakfast, or playing with themselves) both engines to off, board and take over facility.
Approach oil istallation (flow station, crane barge, house boat) at twin engine MCP, keeping up the speed at 42 kts until within 50' target range. At this point bring one engine back to float idle and start shooting simultanously. Wait for 10 seconds, when fire returned from station is more than what you expect, turn away from target as per approach briefing and go around. If no or little resistance (security agents still in bed, at breakfast, or playing with themselves) both engines to off, board and take over facility.
Join Date: Dec 2005
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MM,
What you obviously haven't understood here is the awesome reasoning behind everything that we do. If you lived in the same high-grade camp as we do, you would immediately become a target for terrorists. Living in the slum you do, we are looking after your safety. No internet is good, because now if you can't say anything to your families they won't worry about you. More people leaving is good as there are fewer of you to be a target and if you have no spare parts the aircraft will be grounded, so you will not be exposed to any of the dangers in the swamps. You'll be able to sit in the safety of an office just like we are. We've consulted our experts in Vancouver, and with their awesome knowledge of the situation in Nigeria, they have told us that they agree that this is the way forward.
What you obviously haven't understood here is the awesome reasoning behind everything that we do. If you lived in the same high-grade camp as we do, you would immediately become a target for terrorists. Living in the slum you do, we are looking after your safety. No internet is good, because now if you can't say anything to your families they won't worry about you. More people leaving is good as there are fewer of you to be a target and if you have no spare parts the aircraft will be grounded, so you will not be exposed to any of the dangers in the swamps. You'll be able to sit in the safety of an office just like we are. We've consulted our experts in Vancouver, and with their awesome knowledge of the situation in Nigeria, they have told us that they agree that this is the way forward.
Yeah right: since when did lack of spares ground a/c in Nigeria? That's what the ADD tech log pages are for!!!
Whats the record for a 212 after two weeks in the hangar....23 ADD's when Shell banned the thing from the contract? YX was it....after it finished the Army Medevac contract in Lagos as I recall.
New militia is potent force in Nigeria's oil-rich delta region By Daniel Balint Kurti, Contributor to The Christian Science Monitor
Tue Mar 7, 3:00 AM ET
Gunmen dressed in black balaclavas and camouflage flak jackets approach in a boat. As it draws alongside, their voices can be heard singing. The chorus fades and they introduce themselves.
"We are the security men of the Niger delta," says one of the men in the blue speedboat bristling with assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers. "Nobody is going to hurt you. We are everywhere in the Niger delta."
The singing militiamen are part of the newly organized Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) and are the latest expression of local resentment in a region of the country where tens of millions of dollars worth of oil are extracted each day, but most people live on only several hundred dollars each year.
The MEND organization, whose leadership remains a matter of speculation, appears to be better organized, trained, and equipped than any other group to emerge so far from this restive, swampy region.
"The way [the MEND militiamen] have been able to engage [the Nigerian military] in the last one month or so, the sophistication of firepower, it's not child's play," says Kayode Komolafe, managing editor of Nigeria's This Day newspaper. "What we have in this place is something aching. If we are not careful it could explode into greater warfare."
Nigeria is the world's eighth largest oil exporter and the fifth largest supplier of crude to the US. MEND's recent sabotage of pipelines and other oil facilities has so far shut off over a fifth of the country's oil output, steadily driving up world oil prices.
On Sunday, MEND threatened more attacks and vowed to cut daily oil exports by 1 million barrels this month, adding to concerns for Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as it prepares for a strategy meeting in this week.
MEND recently captured, and subsequently released, six hostages from the US, Egypt, the Philippines, and Thailand last week, but is still holding two Americans and a Briton. MEND has killed at least 14 soldiers in gun battles, but the Nigerian military has refrained from launching an offensive out of fear for the hostages' lives.
An e-mail statement from a MEND spokesman, who goes by the name Jomo Gbomo, said the hostages were "not in risk of death," but they could be held for a good while longer if the military fails to withdraw all troops from the delta - a condition unlikely to be met.
At last week's meeting with journalists in the middle of the Escravos River, a MEND gunman swore to "stop oil flowing from our land" until a host of political and economic grievances were resolved.
High up on the list of demands was the release of two ethnic Ijaw leaders: secessionist militia boss Mujahid Dokubo-Asari, who was arrested in September on treason charges, and Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, a former southern governor who jumped bail in Britain on money laundering charges and was jailed soon after arriving back in Nigeria.
MEND is also demanding that Royal Dutch Shell, which produces close to half Nigeria's oil, pay the Ijaws $1.5 billion in environmental compensation (as demanded by the country's legislature) and that the delta be given greater control over oil revenues.
At present, 13 percent of Nigerian oil revenues flow back to regional state governments, which are renowned for corruption. Delta politicians and militants are demanding that, at a minimum, the region receive 50 percent.
Abel Oshevire, spokesman for the regional Delta state government, says constitutional amendments allocating greater control of the region's resources to local authorities are needed. "We are working seriously at this and we should be able to achieve our desire."
Observers are taking MEND seriously. They militiamen boast of an arsenal including heavy M-16 guns and more serious weaponry than any other Nigerian militias to date. Their 400-horsepower boats are faster than Nigerian Navy craft.
For now, authorities say they don't knows where the arms are coming from, but observers suspect that they are purchased with the proceeds of a lucrative trade in stolen oil, known in Nigeria as "bunkering."
A source close to government teams working for the hostages' release points to the group's discipline and professional bearing as signs that its members have probably undergone months of serious training by experienced soldiers or former soldiers. Mr. Gbomo says the militia includes "dismissed, retired, and serving military personnel."
This militia's actions are also different from other similar groups in the region. Before MEND, kidnappings of foreigners had not been carried out to push for national political reforms, but rather were a means of extracting ransom payments or forcing oil companies to help a given local community.
President Olusegun Obasanjo insists that he is doing what he can for the delta's development, including setting up a development agency for the region. Locals say the agency's projects, which include road-building and a computer-training center, don't see a real difference.
Demieari Von Kemedi, a human rights campaigner in the oil city of Port Harcourt, says Mr. Obasanjo's strategy is to "create the impression that he is not too worried about the issues and, secondly, that the issue may not be as important as people represent it to be."
By putting local governors in charge of negotiation attempts, Mr. Von Kemedi says, Obasanjo is "giving the issue a local appearance rather than an issue of national importance ... and by so doing not creating any forum at all for many fundamental questions" to be discussed.
Tue Mar 7, 3:00 AM ET
Gunmen dressed in black balaclavas and camouflage flak jackets approach in a boat. As it draws alongside, their voices can be heard singing. The chorus fades and they introduce themselves.
"We are the security men of the Niger delta," says one of the men in the blue speedboat bristling with assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers. "Nobody is going to hurt you. We are everywhere in the Niger delta."
The singing militiamen are part of the newly organized Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) and are the latest expression of local resentment in a region of the country where tens of millions of dollars worth of oil are extracted each day, but most people live on only several hundred dollars each year.
The MEND organization, whose leadership remains a matter of speculation, appears to be better organized, trained, and equipped than any other group to emerge so far from this restive, swampy region.
"The way [the MEND militiamen] have been able to engage [the Nigerian military] in the last one month or so, the sophistication of firepower, it's not child's play," says Kayode Komolafe, managing editor of Nigeria's This Day newspaper. "What we have in this place is something aching. If we are not careful it could explode into greater warfare."
Nigeria is the world's eighth largest oil exporter and the fifth largest supplier of crude to the US. MEND's recent sabotage of pipelines and other oil facilities has so far shut off over a fifth of the country's oil output, steadily driving up world oil prices.
On Sunday, MEND threatened more attacks and vowed to cut daily oil exports by 1 million barrels this month, adding to concerns for Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as it prepares for a strategy meeting in this week.
MEND recently captured, and subsequently released, six hostages from the US, Egypt, the Philippines, and Thailand last week, but is still holding two Americans and a Briton. MEND has killed at least 14 soldiers in gun battles, but the Nigerian military has refrained from launching an offensive out of fear for the hostages' lives.
An e-mail statement from a MEND spokesman, who goes by the name Jomo Gbomo, said the hostages were "not in risk of death," but they could be held for a good while longer if the military fails to withdraw all troops from the delta - a condition unlikely to be met.
At last week's meeting with journalists in the middle of the Escravos River, a MEND gunman swore to "stop oil flowing from our land" until a host of political and economic grievances were resolved.
High up on the list of demands was the release of two ethnic Ijaw leaders: secessionist militia boss Mujahid Dokubo-Asari, who was arrested in September on treason charges, and Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, a former southern governor who jumped bail in Britain on money laundering charges and was jailed soon after arriving back in Nigeria.
MEND is also demanding that Royal Dutch Shell, which produces close to half Nigeria's oil, pay the Ijaws $1.5 billion in environmental compensation (as demanded by the country's legislature) and that the delta be given greater control over oil revenues.
At present, 13 percent of Nigerian oil revenues flow back to regional state governments, which are renowned for corruption. Delta politicians and militants are demanding that, at a minimum, the region receive 50 percent.
Abel Oshevire, spokesman for the regional Delta state government, says constitutional amendments allocating greater control of the region's resources to local authorities are needed. "We are working seriously at this and we should be able to achieve our desire."
Observers are taking MEND seriously. They militiamen boast of an arsenal including heavy M-16 guns and more serious weaponry than any other Nigerian militias to date. Their 400-horsepower boats are faster than Nigerian Navy craft.
For now, authorities say they don't knows where the arms are coming from, but observers suspect that they are purchased with the proceeds of a lucrative trade in stolen oil, known in Nigeria as "bunkering."
A source close to government teams working for the hostages' release points to the group's discipline and professional bearing as signs that its members have probably undergone months of serious training by experienced soldiers or former soldiers. Mr. Gbomo says the militia includes "dismissed, retired, and serving military personnel."
This militia's actions are also different from other similar groups in the region. Before MEND, kidnappings of foreigners had not been carried out to push for national political reforms, but rather were a means of extracting ransom payments or forcing oil companies to help a given local community.
President Olusegun Obasanjo insists that he is doing what he can for the delta's development, including setting up a development agency for the region. Locals say the agency's projects, which include road-building and a computer-training center, don't see a real difference.
Demieari Von Kemedi, a human rights campaigner in the oil city of Port Harcourt, says Mr. Obasanjo's strategy is to "create the impression that he is not too worried about the issues and, secondly, that the issue may not be as important as people represent it to be."
By putting local governors in charge of negotiation attempts, Mr. Von Kemedi says, Obasanjo is "giving the issue a local appearance rather than an issue of national importance ... and by so doing not creating any forum at all for many fundamental questions" to be discussed.
Join Date: Feb 2004
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Thank goodness, the end of another great day in Nigeria 
'Cultists kill 6 in Port Harcourt' - gosh is it on the way to work; might cause a go-slow. No well away.
Get in to work. Hm, where are we going today - somewhere nice and safe a long way offshore (as long as we don't have a gearbox or engine faiulure en-route over one of the bandit areas)
. No, it's okay, off to Warri area. Hm, is it safe there with 16 killed yesterday in (whichever place was last attacked within the last 48 hours 
). Yes, it's okay today, but don't go to Bonny - lots of pirate attacks reported there. Guess I better pick another alternate for my offshore diversion today then. Got back and had fun grovelling around in amongst all the masts in cr@p visibility cos suddenly the Harmattan decided to come and pay us a visit at last
Never a dull moment
'Cultists kill 6 in Port Harcourt' - gosh is it on the way to work; might cause a go-slow. No well away.
Get in to work. Hm, where are we going today - somewhere nice and safe a long way offshore (as long as we don't have a gearbox or engine faiulure en-route over one of the bandit areas)
. No, it's okay, off to Warri area. Hm, is it safe there with 16 killed yesterday in (whichever place was last attacked within the last 48 hours ). Yes, it's okay today, but don't go to Bonny - lots of pirate attacks reported there. Guess I better pick another alternate for my offshore diversion today then. Got back and had fun grovelling around in amongst all the masts in cr@p visibility cos suddenly the Harmattan decided to come and pay us a visit at last Never a dull moment
Nigerian In Law
Mama,
What is the new PH accommodation in a "bad high crime area" really like ? It's actually OK. Swimming pool, gym, no transport hang ups like a lot of operations, internet on the way, DSTV in every flat, almost all en suite etc. Just the usual teething problems with a new place. I stayed there and believe me it's a lot better than other gaffs.
How do you, me or anyone else define a bad high crime area ? GRA/Ajao Estate in Lagos with the area boys and robberies almost every night ? Or perhaps isolated Elelenwo where buses get robbed and drivers shot ? Idugboe in Warri or the old TOPCON houses in Edewor Estate ? Run down Arreta ?
Just so not everyone is negative !!
Cheers,
NEO
What is the new PH accommodation in a "bad high crime area" really like ? It's actually OK. Swimming pool, gym, no transport hang ups like a lot of operations, internet on the way, DSTV in every flat, almost all en suite etc. Just the usual teething problems with a new place. I stayed there and believe me it's a lot better than other gaffs.
How do you, me or anyone else define a bad high crime area ? GRA/Ajao Estate in Lagos with the area boys and robberies almost every night ? Or perhaps isolated Elelenwo where buses get robbed and drivers shot ? Idugboe in Warri or the old TOPCON houses in Edewor Estate ? Run down Arreta ?
Just so not everyone is negative !!
Cheers,
NEO
Join Date: Feb 2004
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NEO,
You may be partially right, but talking to a few of the guys living in the new Bristow houses they're not impressed, especially with the area which they tell me was picked on the basis of its low cost because most people don't want to live there. I heard there are problems with the swimming pool, generator and still no internet. Also, it's only [I]almost[I] all the rooms with en-suite, not all. If and when all the problems are sorted out, it could easily just become another mink-lined prison like Elelenwo, where the majority of the inhabitants don't go out after dark. Bristow, under its new regime, is trying to cut back on most things, just like Aero under its new regime.
The houses on Areta are undoubtedly run down, second-rate slums, but at least it's close to a lot of other leisure facilities. That's just as well really because for the suckers living there and now denied a move to the new Intels camp near the Amadi flats, there's nothing except for the Aero bar, which is a shadow of its former self. A few pilots have asked for transfers, but they have a fat chance of getting anything as long as CHC is as short of pilots as it is. If they don't do something about improving facilities that's a situation unlikely to change. Soon they'll only be able to get pensioners who can't find work elsewhere will be willing to join
Maybe if CHC really is sold things will improve, but experience tells us that normally change is for the worse as bean-counters rule more of the world.
Even the third-rate Caverton now have internet in their lousyflats (equipped with everything, but only 20% of it works ).
Conclusion - if you want to work in Africa, look somewhere other than Nigeria (except, possibly the hell of the CHC operation in Heglig, previously destroyed by the Sudanese People's Liberation Army as a result of support given to the government by another Canadian company, Talisman Energy, in the suppression of the local residents by means of bombing, looting, raping and forced relocation
. Talisman allowed their airstrip to be used by Antonov bombers and helicopter gunships). Does this sound a bit like Shell's financial support for MOPOL and army operations in the Niger delta, and especially Ogoniland?
You are welcome
You may be partially right, but talking to a few of the guys living in the new Bristow houses they're not impressed, especially with the area which they tell me was picked on the basis of its low cost because most people don't want to live there. I heard there are problems with the swimming pool, generator and still no internet. Also, it's only [I]almost[I] all the rooms with en-suite, not all. If and when all the problems are sorted out, it could easily just become another mink-lined prison like Elelenwo, where the majority of the inhabitants don't go out after dark. Bristow, under its new regime, is trying to cut back on most things, just like Aero under its new regime.
The houses on Areta are undoubtedly run down, second-rate slums, but at least it's close to a lot of other leisure facilities. That's just as well really because for the suckers living there and now denied a move to the new Intels camp near the Amadi flats, there's nothing except for the Aero bar, which is a shadow of its former self. A few pilots have asked for transfers, but they have a fat chance of getting anything as long as CHC is as short of pilots as it is. If they don't do something about improving facilities that's a situation unlikely to change. Soon they'll only be able to get pensioners who can't find work elsewhere will be willing to join
Maybe if CHC really is sold things will improve, but experience tells us that normally change is for the worse as bean-counters rule more of the world.Even the third-rate Caverton now have internet in their lousyflats (equipped with everything, but only 20% of it works
).Conclusion - if you want to work in Africa, look somewhere other than Nigeria (except, possibly the hell of the CHC operation in Heglig, previously destroyed by the Sudanese People's Liberation Army as a result of support given to the government by another Canadian company, Talisman Energy, in the suppression of the local residents by means of bombing, looting, raping and forced relocation
. Talisman allowed their airstrip to be used by Antonov bombers and helicopter gunships). Does this sound a bit like Shell's financial support for MOPOL and army operations in the Niger delta, and especially Ogoniland?You are welcome
Ah, Life in the oil patch!
At least the prison is "mink" lined....unlike Colditz of days gone by.
To save money....they welded the windows shut rather than put bars over the outside. As if that would keep a burglar out.
Of course...which happened more...no electricity for the air cons and fans or burglars attacking the place?
At least the prison is "mink" lined....unlike Colditz of days gone by.
To save money....they welded the windows shut rather than put bars over the outside. As if that would keep a burglar out.
Of course...which happened more...no electricity for the air cons and fans or burglars attacking the place?
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When considering Nigeria, don't forget you too could become a hostage. These three have been in captivity for a month now. They aren't pilots, but it happens to pilots too. Serious stuff.
Taken from http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?s...2611743229B252
Taken from http://today.reuters.com/news/newsAr...archived=False
Obasanjo pledges to help save hostages
Abuja - Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo on Friday assured that he would do everything possible to save the lives of the three hostages still being held by ethnic Ijaw militants in the Niger Delta.
"We have to show restraint, even if this portrays the government as weak. If we choose to use force, lives will definitely be lost," he said.
"I will do everything possible to save lives in all circumstances," Obasanjo told Malcolm Brinded, director of exploration and production at Shell International during the latter's visit to Abuja.
He said, from now on, all communities where development projects were sited would be the first beneficiaries of the services being provided by such facilities.
'We have to show restraint'
"We must ensure that an all-encompassing plan is put in place involving all tiers of government and relevant companies for a socio-economic transformation of all areas where mineral resources are mined," Obasanjo said.
He said the Nigerian government expected oil-rich states and local councils to provide secondary schools, medical centre and roads, while companies operating in these parts of the country also also contribute to the local economy.
Brinded had earlier told Obasanjo that Shell appreciated the Nigerian government's efforts to secure the release of the three hostages.
The three hostages, two Americans and a Briton, were abducted by militants from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta on February 18 along with six of their colleagues while laying pipes for Shell in the region.
All are employees of oil services company Willbros Group, based in Houston, Texas.
The six other hostages were released on March 1 by the militants who are demanding control of oil in the Niger Delta, a resource that accounts for more than 90 percent of Nigeria's total annual foreign exchange earnings.
The militants are also demanding the immediate release of two Ijaw leaders, Mujahidee Asari-Dokubo, currently standing trial for treason and Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, the impeached governor of Bayelsa state in the Niger Delta, who is currently facing trial for embezzlement of public funds.
Alamieyeseigha jumped bail in London rather than face money laundering charges in that country, but was impeached, arrested and taken to court upon his return to Nigeria. - Sapa-dpa
Abuja - Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo on Friday assured that he would do everything possible to save the lives of the three hostages still being held by ethnic Ijaw militants in the Niger Delta.
"We have to show restraint, even if this portrays the government as weak. If we choose to use force, lives will definitely be lost," he said.
"I will do everything possible to save lives in all circumstances," Obasanjo told Malcolm Brinded, director of exploration and production at Shell International during the latter's visit to Abuja.
He said, from now on, all communities where development projects were sited would be the first beneficiaries of the services being provided by such facilities.
'We have to show restraint'
"We must ensure that an all-encompassing plan is put in place involving all tiers of government and relevant companies for a socio-economic transformation of all areas where mineral resources are mined," Obasanjo said.
He said the Nigerian government expected oil-rich states and local councils to provide secondary schools, medical centre and roads, while companies operating in these parts of the country also also contribute to the local economy.
Brinded had earlier told Obasanjo that Shell appreciated the Nigerian government's efforts to secure the release of the three hostages.
The three hostages, two Americans and a Briton, were abducted by militants from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta on February 18 along with six of their colleagues while laying pipes for Shell in the region.
All are employees of oil services company Willbros Group, based in Houston, Texas.
The six other hostages were released on March 1 by the militants who are demanding control of oil in the Niger Delta, a resource that accounts for more than 90 percent of Nigeria's total annual foreign exchange earnings.
The militants are also demanding the immediate release of two Ijaw leaders, Mujahidee Asari-Dokubo, currently standing trial for treason and Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, the impeached governor of Bayelsa state in the Niger Delta, who is currently facing trial for embezzlement of public funds.
Alamieyeseigha jumped bail in London rather than face money laundering charges in that country, but was impeached, arrested and taken to court upon his return to Nigeria. - Sapa-dpa
WARRI, Nigeria (Reuters) - Nigerian militants said on Wednesday they had separated three foreign oil workers in their captivity for strategic reasons, but did not intend to kill them.
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta has been holding two Americans and one Briton for almost a month since they were abducted from an oil industry barge in the mangrove-lined creeks of the Niger Delta.
The kidnapping was one of a series of militant attacks in the world's eighth largest oil exporter, which has cut supplies by almost a quarter.
"The hostages have been separated for strategic reasons and all considerations to their comfort and well-being disregarded henceforth," the militants said in an email.
"However...they will not be executed without good reason."
The militants, who move around the maze of river channels in speed boats, have demanded more local control over the delta's oil wealth, the release of two jailed ethnic Ijaw leaders and compensation for oil pollution of delta villages.
The government has called them "rascals" and oil thieves.
The militants said their demands had not been addressed by the government and talks to secure the hostages' release had not begun. Diplomats say the militant group is fragmented and different factions have been giving different messages about the likelihood of release.
The militants originally seized nine employees of U.S. oil services company Willbros on February 18, but freed six on March 1.
It was the second series of kidnappings and attacks on the oil industry in two months, which analysts have linked to political instability in Nigeria before elections next year.
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta has been holding two Americans and one Briton for almost a month since they were abducted from an oil industry barge in the mangrove-lined creeks of the Niger Delta.
The kidnapping was one of a series of militant attacks in the world's eighth largest oil exporter, which has cut supplies by almost a quarter.
"The hostages have been separated for strategic reasons and all considerations to their comfort and well-being disregarded henceforth," the militants said in an email.
"However...they will not be executed without good reason."
The militants, who move around the maze of river channels in speed boats, have demanded more local control over the delta's oil wealth, the release of two jailed ethnic Ijaw leaders and compensation for oil pollution of delta villages.
The government has called them "rascals" and oil thieves.
The militants said their demands had not been addressed by the government and talks to secure the hostages' release had not begun. Diplomats say the militant group is fragmented and different factions have been giving different messages about the likelihood of release.
The militants originally seized nine employees of U.S. oil services company Willbros on February 18, but freed six on March 1.
It was the second series of kidnappings and attacks on the oil industry in two months, which analysts have linked to political instability in Nigeria before elections next year.
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Caverton eh? They haven't been much in the Niger Delta and it's obvious. Maybe someone should have a quiet word with their bossman about making sure they have some Ecureil pilots who know their location when they're down operating in busy helicopter airspace like around Port Harcourt, so everyone doesn't have to be even busier staying from their way
Join Date: Oct 2003
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The Bossman of Caverton....Sure he wouldn't know his arse from his elbow on his best day, let alone what to do with a helicopter......now money laundering...thats a different story!!!!
Nigerian In Law
43,
AGREE !! Someone else will be escorted onto a plane in the night.............. The originals were proper, but now they appear to be scraping the proverbial. Pay the salaries and get a good reputation, reap the benefits. They haven't started off too well have they ??
NEO
AGREE !! Someone else will be escorted onto a plane in the night.............. The originals were proper, but now they appear to be scraping the proverbial. Pay the salaries and get a good reputation, reap the benefits. They haven't started off too well have they ??
NEO
So where is this new BHL PH accommodation, and for which crews?
Join Date: Dec 2003
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212 Man,
The new Bristow houses are in a compound at Woji. Bristow now have quite a few aircraft based at the NAF Base (a mix of Bell 212/412 and S76s) with more reportedly on the way, including a 332 for SNEPCO soon. The housing is for them.
NEO, I guess you're referring to the first Ops Director of Caverton who was reportedly held in his house by armed MOPOL after a disagreement with the Chairman and then escorted onto his flight out by the same MOPOL. Just like the normal practice anywhere if a pilot has an argument with management eh? Still, I guess all is now going well for them. Their new deputy Chief Pilot was just a co-pilot 2 months ago.
The new Bristow houses are in a compound at Woji. Bristow now have quite a few aircraft based at the NAF Base (a mix of Bell 212/412 and S76s) with more reportedly on the way, including a 332 for SNEPCO soon. The housing is for them.
NEO, I guess you're referring to the first Ops Director of Caverton who was reportedly held in his house by armed MOPOL after a disagreement with the Chairman and then escorted onto his flight out by the same MOPOL. Just like the normal practice anywhere if a pilot has an argument with management eh?
Still, I guess all is now going well for them. Their new deputy Chief Pilot was just a co-pilot 2 months ago.