The Joint Military Task Force (JTF) in the Niger Delta, codenamed Operation Delta Safe (OPDS) with headquarters in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, has destroyed over 40 illegal refining sites in Ukwa forest of Abia State.
The task force said it also discovered and destroyed over 17 clusters with different names with each of the clusters having a cooking section.
The Commander, OPDS, Rear Admiral John Okeke, who led the operation, said that over 40 sites operating in the area were refining stolen crude oil siphoned by suspected oil thieves.
Okeke reminisced that on assumption of office on February 15, 2024, he made it abundantly clear that the joint operation area of the Operation Delta Safe would never be a safe haven for illegality, especially those criminals that had chosen to be stealing the country’s crude oil.
He stated: “I made it clear then on assumption of duty, that if they are not ready to indulge in legitimate business, they have two options: they either relocate to another area or they embrace legitimate business.
“But here we are today in Ukwa West of Abia state, bordering Oyigbo Local Government Area of Rivers State, the criminals felt that we will never get to this place, but here we are.
“It is surprising to note that within here we have over 17 divisions, according to their naming, each of this division has a cooking section of over 40 sites.
“Today we have been able to traverse 40 of such sites. Of course, there is one that the construction is ongoing and it is far larger than two trucks.
“You can imagine the quantity of products they would have stolen and refined there. So, I want to say today that we are not going to relent in our efforts for those of them that do not want to abide by extant regulations regarding petroleum products. I will advise them to relocate before we will come for them.”
The OPDS commander said that for those who don’t know the challenges the JTF is encountering in its operations even when the troops have access to overflying, they certainly would not pick the illicit activities going on.
He noted: “Here, sometimes a lot of you begin to wonder but you can see things for yourselves. We are under thick forest and even if you are flying, your drones or helicopters will not be able to observe anything.
“But thank God, we leveraged intelligence in our operations hence we will always call on the civil population to volunteer useful intelligence as they are very critical to our operations.
“We have been partnering the civil populace; this war against oil theft cannot be done by the military alone and other components such as the police, civil defenders and others.
“We need to rid this criminality from our joint operation area and support the federal government to stabilise the economy.”
