General

JTF vows to fish out militants who bombed pipelines in Delta

January 17, 2016 10:37 pm

The joint taskforce (JTF), Operation PULO SHIELD (OPS) has described the attack on oil installations in Warri South-West local government area of Delta state as economic sabotage, saying the command would apprehend the perpetrators.

Alani Okunola, commander of the force, said this on Sunday while inspecting the site of Friday’s pipeline explosion site at Egwa 11, in Warri.

Okunlola, who led other security personnel to the explosion site, also warned community leaders that they would be held responsible for any attack on the country’s oil and gas facilities in their domains.

He added that henceforth, extant laws banning the use of outboard engines with 200 horsepower and above would be enforced in the region.

“This warning is coming as a result of the recent multiple attacks on oil facilities and platforms by suspected militants in the Niger Delta,” he said.

“This pipeline was blown up three days ago. We are going to fish out those responsible. It is a national sabotage and critical asset.”

He called on government officials and community leaders to furnished OPS and other security agencies with information that would facilitate the arrest of the perpetrators of the attacks.

He said the acts were criminal in nature and were capable of undermining the security of the country.

“There is no way we will fold our hands and allow the criminals to get away with it,” he said.

“It is a massive sabotage and critical to national assets; we must fish out those responsible for it.

“We don’t have our men on ground in the area that is why they were able to carry out the act.”

He assured Niger Delta residents of JTF’s determination to eliminate illegality from the region.

Farouk Yahaya, the brigade commander, and Igwe Omoke, commander, 3 battalion, were on the team that visited the explosion site.

Others are commander, Nigeria Navy Ship (NNS) Delta, Raimi Mohammed, a commodore, and some top ranking personnel from the police and Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps.