Group applauds Navy for reducing oil theft in Niger Delta

A pro-democracy, the Niger-Delta Development Initiative (NDDI), has applauded the efforts of the Nigerian Navy to get rid of oil bunkers and illegal oil merchants in the South South region.

The group specifically acknowledged the bravery of the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla and his team in waging war against oil bunkers in the oil-rich region.

According to a statement signed by the President of NDDI, Rev. Sam Smith Tonye, yesterday, before Ogalla came on board as Chief of Naval Staff, the proliferation of pirates and illegal oil merchants in Niger Delta had caused the Federal Government a great fortune.

Tonye said: “The various efforts and machineries put in place by Ogalla in combating crimes and criminality around the seas and nation’s waterways cannot be ignored.

“The measures put in place to check the activities of those pirates and bunkers are seriously paying off. The top merchants and their Abuja collaborators now know it’s no longer business as usual.”

The group also praised the Chief of Naval Staff for “protecting the nation’s coastal waters from external enemies who come in to steal the nation’s wealth regularly.”

This, the group said, was far from what was the state of the oil-rich region before the inauguration of Bola Tinubu as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and the subsequent appointment of Ogalla as CNS.

The statement noted that barely six months of serving as CNS, Ogalla has brought about improved changes in the Niger Delta region.

President Tinubu appointed Ogalla as CNS in June, 2023, a few days after his inauguration as President.