Diri condemns use of children as shields at illegal oil sites

Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Douye Diri, has expressed concern over a new trend in oil bunkering, saying children and women were being used as human shields at illegal refining camps.

The Bayelsa governor stated this during a meeting with first-class traditional rulers in the state and local government chairmen in Government House, Yenagoa.

He said the ugly situation was discovered by security operatives and called on traditional rulers to educate their subjects on the dangers of the illegal business to human health and the environment.

He said: “The report I received recently is that at illegal bunkering sites, they now have children and women, which is a dimension I have never heard before.

“Sometimes, when the military are authorised to destroy those camps and they get there on reconnaissance, they discover that children and women are used to shield those places. So, we all have to work together in our domains to educate our people.

“There was a situation where the military moved in and discovered that children and women were there and had to withdraw.”

Diri urged the monarchs and council chairmen to take steps to curb the menace in Southern Ijaw, Ekeremor, Brass, and Nembe council areas.

He charged the monarchs to report oil bunkering sites in their domains, stressing that the ugly trend could be addressed through collaborative efforts.