Group commends JTF over arrest of oil thieves

The JTF Commander paraded the oil thieves in Yenagoa who were said to have offered a N20 million bribe to security operatives to allow them to siphon oil from Shell pipeline at Chanomi in Delta State before their arrest.Lancelot said that the success of the JTF in ridding the Niger Delta of oil theft and […]

The JTF Commander paraded the oil thieves in Yenagoa who were said to have offered a N20 million bribe to security operatives to allow them to siphon oil from Shell pipeline at Chanomi in Delta State before their arrest.
Lancelot said that the success of the JTF in ridding the Niger Delta of oil theft and illegal bunkering was important if NOSDRA must deliver on the task of sanitising and saving the environment, saying there was a relationship between the activities of oil thieves and oil spillage.
He said: “Our worry at NOSDRA is about oil spill and a major source of that problem is that of oil thieves because more often than not, these saboteurs do not have the expertise to deal with the infrastructure that they attack in the attempt to feed their greed and thereby damaging our ecology through oil spills.
“This damage to the ecology is one no one is immune from because of the health implications in various forms. It is an economic terrorism and a crime that must be won,” a statement by the agency quoted him to have said.
He called on stakeholders in the region  to embrace a new regime of engagement  being canvassed by NOSDRA which places premium on patriotism and conscientious approach to fight against oil theft which is a major threat to national survival, adding that every stakeholder should now brace up to the challenge and give peace a chance.
“We commend the Operation Pulo Shield Command as an institution for the excellent work the JTF has done over the years, which in the process, is bringing sanity to this part of our country. The JTF has been a critical enabler of our national economy, our national security and our national stability,” he said.