The outgoing Commander of Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Pathfinder, Port Harcourt, Commodore Sulieman Ibrahim, said the noticeable increase in crude oil production in the country could be attributed to the onslaught on oil thieves and saboteurs by the Navy in recent times.

The Navy chief disclosed this in his farewell speech at the Naval Base in Port Harcourt, yesterday, saying the Base is instrumental in the increased on-shore crude oil production in the country.

Ibrahim, who took charge of the NNS Pathfinder Base on March 31, 2022, said the issue of illegal oil bunkering and pipeline vandalism had reduced under his watch.

Recounting his achievement, the Commander noted that under his watch, a tactical unit called Tactical Riverine Assault Squadron (TRAS) was created to stamp out riverine oil thieves.

He noted that some of the changes he inspired were daily physical training exercises, swimming, range classification and anti-attack drills.

He said: “I can recall that I assumed command of this foremost Naval Base on March 31, 2022. Since then, we collectively had to go through various transformations to meet contemporary challenges.

“It is pertinent that these transformations did not come easy; however, they were key to the successes of NNS Pathfinder in the fight against illegalities within the maritime domain of Rivers State.”

He further noted that he tackled the welfare of the personnel, infrastructure and the fight against crude oil theft.

He added: “I feel nostalgic because of something I am used to doing, which I had to stop. Of course, I am moving to other things. I am going to Naval Headquarters as a director, and that is a step up. It has been an eventful tenure.

“The number of illegal cooking camps, the Cotonou boats is in the hundreds and the number of arrests is over 150 persons. We have handed them over to relevant agencies for prosecution. As you know, the Navy does not have that authority to prosecute.”