French oil major Total has moved its staff from the Nigerian capital Abuja following the kidnapping of a French national last month, Chief Executive Christophe de Margerie said on Friday.
This is the first time in recent history that a company has said it has evacuated foreigners from Nigeria's capital due to security concerns. Western diplomatic sources told Reuters earlier this week that embassies were not planning to remove families of their staff from Abuja.

"What we do first is to limit the number of expatriates, not because they have more rights to be protected than the others, but because they are a more interesting target, if I may say," de Margerie told France 24 television.

He did not elaborate on the number of staff moved.

"In Nigeria, we have three installations ... We moved our people from Abuja, which is the city that is most at risk, to Lagos and Port-Harcourt, and if necessary, we move them back to Paris," he told the TV channel on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Nigerian Islamist group Ansaru kidnapped a French national last month in the remote northern town of Rimi, close to the Niger border.

The group threatened to continue to target the French because of the country's support of military action in Mali and its decision to ban the full face veil.

Ansaru claimed an attack on a military convoy taking troops from Nigeria to Mali last week in Kogi state, south of the capital Abuja.

The group's full name is Jama'atu Ansarul Musilimina Fi Biladis Sudan, which roughly translates as "Vanguards for the Protection of Muslims in Black Africa".

The group, thought to be a breakaway from better known Islamist sect Boko Haram, has risen to greater prominence in recent weeks.

It claimed responsibility for a dawn raid on a major police station in the Nigerian capital in November, where it said hundreds of prisoners were released.

Britain last year put Ansaru on its official "terrorist group" list, saying it was aligned with al Qaeda and was behind the kidnap of a British and an Italian killed earlier this year during a failed rescue attempt.

Ansaru is thought to have loose ties to Boko Haram, which killed hundreds last year in an insurgency focused mostly on Nigerian security forces, religious targets and politicians, rather than foreigners.

De Margerie said Total had also moved some of its personnel out of Algeria.

Last week's siege at an Algerian gas plant by Islamist militants, which ended with heavy loss of life among foreign hostages, also prompted the French oil major to take extra measures to protect its staff in the northern African country.

"In Algeria, those who were in the desert, we brought them back to Algiers, and those who had no need to stay in Algiers, (they were) repatriated to France," he said.

"But at the same time, we carry on, we must not stop (production), we're continuing at the same pace, but with a lower headcount," he added.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/01/25/total-nigeria-idUKL6N0AUC1420130125

Shouldn't they have kept their staffs and operations in lagos to start with? I guess they love to learn the hard way.

And Nae just moved their staff to Abuja from ph. What an irony

Soo sad!

Things happen for correction.

Lagos state has all it takes(safety,strategical,economical and geographical benefit)to be an FCT. Abuja was just a forceful fake politically nurtured but artificial FCT. Abuja is just not ideally,worth an FCT.
Eko o ni baje

Na dem sabi

Ok

midetinz: Lagos state has all it takes(safety,strategical,economical and geographical benefit)to be an FCT. Abuja was just a forceful fake politically nurtured but artificial FCT. Abuja is just not ideally,worth an FCT.
Eko o ni baje

why not the oil companies move their staff to Niger Delta what will they be doing in lagos since lagos has no oil

Total,a rewarding company to work with.Anyways,safety first

Hmmm ISLAM again?...Anywayz it was *sarah* wife of Abraham who caused all these problems,had it been she had never offered her maid *haggai* to Abraham who later gave birth to a troublesome son *ishmael*,peace would have reigned forever in the whole world

midetinz: Lagos state has all it takes(safety,strategical,economical and geographical benefit)to be an FCT. Abuja was just a forceful fake politically nurtured but artificial FCT. Abuja is just not ideally,worth an FCT.
Eko o ni baje

You can still push for the return of FCT from Abuja to Lagos. Lagos does not befit a a nations capital at all. I mean at all. Abuja is central. Hence its pretty ok for a nations capital. No dominant tribe. Very neutral. You can't walk up to anybody and ask for a direction in Yoruba, Hausa or Igbo. Apart from this, its solid in terms of development. Lagos is too dirty. I blame boko haram. If not...

Is that the point?? Geez!!! Are u guys that dumb to see what's happening here? NIGERIA is no longer a safe place for anyone! All the company that's 'pose to invest here are afraid!! Until all companies relocate to outside NIGERIA then u guys will know its a serious matter. We have bad image already to the outside communities!

kettykin:

why not the oil companies move their staff to Niger Delta what will they be doing in lagos since lagos has no oil

Where did you get that from ?

It seems like you are very ignorant. No point posting if you have not done you homework.

Can any body explain the difference between ISLAM and ISLAMIC SECT? Since ISLAM is a religion of peace. A'm getting confused of the two. pls pls help me out.

Niger delta?where kidnapping originated from?No WAY!

So you can kidnap them abi

kettykin:

why not the oil companies move their staff to Niger Delta what will they be doing in lagos since lagos has no oil

I have I feeling that 90 percent of both boko haram and jamb are not Nigerian

midetinz: Niger delta?where kidnapping originated from?No WAY!

these things were hared far off, BUT NOW, at our door steps. when a tree is falling monkeys will be rejoicing not knowing that their home is falling. these play will turn to cry if care is not taken

I know that nigeria will still change. Lagbara olorun

Mumu dey smell, islam is the cos of the war in congo, Mexican drug cartel, far in columbia, school shootings in America, Burma, Korean peninsula, karshmir, i forgot Hitler was a Muslim and same for ww2. Idiat.

cyril83: Hmmm ISLAM again?...Anywayz it was *sarah* wife of Abraham that caused all these problems,had it been she had never offered her maid *haggai* to Abraham who later gave birth to troublesome son *ishmael*,peace would have reigned forever in the whole world

phaya: Is that the point?? Geez!!! Are u guys that dumb to see what's happening here? NIGERIA is no longer a safe place for anyone! All the company that's 'pose to invest here are afraid!! Until all companies relocate to outside NIGERIA then u guys will know its a serious matter. We have bad image already to the outside communities!

thank you. some are still ignorance of what is going on. not matter of niger delta, abuja or lagos but facts are thrown out

this is bad very very bad for us.

templeinyou: Can any body explain the difference between ISLAM and ISLAMIC SECT? Since ISLAM is a religion of peace. A'm getting confused of the two. pls pls help me out.

Religion of peace ke?...lemme give a short history of islam, when hagar ran away from her mistress *sarai* then The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. And he said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.

Then the angel of the LORD told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” The angel added, “I will so increase your descendants that they will be too numerous to count.” The angel of the LORD also said to her: “You are now with child and you will have a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard of your misery. He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers....now open ur dictionary and check d meaning of hostility, anywayz save ur stress of looking arnd for a dictionary hostility means act of war and for ur information ishmael was the founding father of this religion.

grafikii: Mumu dey smell, islam is the cos of the war in congo, Mexican drug cartel, far in columbia, school shootings in America, Burma, Korean peninsula, karshmir, i forgot Hitler was a Muslim and same for ww2. Idiat.

I fail to see your point, the names you just mentioned now do you see 'Christian sect' dere..

Northern Nigeria better get ready to deal with economic woes as a result of the insecurity there. Right now they are the least-yielding states financially in Nigeria and things can only get worse for them. The sooner the Northerners realise that this is their problem and deal with it, the better for them. The FG cannot handle the entire insecurity problem for them.

Jonathan said Nigerians are now happy about the "improved standard of life"

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cyril83: Religion of peace ke?...lemme give a short history of islam, when haggai ran away from her mistress *sarah* then The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. And he said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.

Then the angel of the LORD told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” The angel added, “I will so increase your descendants that they will be too numerous to count.” The angel of the LORD also said to her: “You are now with child and you will have a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard of your misery. He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers....now open ur dictionary and check d meaning of hostility.

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Hmmmm...... Islam

To b forewarned is 2 b .....

midetinz: L agos state has all it takes(safety,strategical,economical and geographical benefit)to be an FCT. Abuja was just a forceful fake politically nurture.d but artificial FCT. Abuja is just not ideally,worth an FCT.
Eko o ni baje

. strategilly, you dont locate your capital in a coastal city. its makes her a easy target in case of external aggression.

A phase is about to be activated. The French are just taking precaution. Nigeria, we are watching.