The Minister of Defence, Alhaji Mohammed Badaru, has said that the Operation “Delta Safe” action in the South South region of the country was yielding results as Nigeria’s oil production has increased.
Badaru said this during his maiden visit to the Headquarters of the Nigerian Army 6 Division, Port Harcourt.
This is contained in a statement by Mr Henshaw Ogubike, Director, Information and Public Relations, Ministry of Defence and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja.
The minister commended the operations of the Division/ Land Component Joint Task task of the operation for their continued fight against oil theft and other forms of criminalities in the region.
According to him, the increase in oil production is a testament to the sustained fight by the special task force.
He noted the efforts of the Operation Delta Safe, the Chief of Defence Staff and the unwavering support of President Bola Tinubu in the fight against oil theft that has been ravaging the nation.
He re-emphasised the need for joint efforts in fighting the menace, adding that the hope of Nigerians was for the oil to drive the nation to prosperity.
“What we are doing today is to commend the troops and encourage them to do more and put an end to oil theft in the region,” he said.
Badaru also reaffirmed his confidence that with the detailed plan agreed by the Chief of Defence Staff, there was hope of defeating the crime of oil theft in the region.
“Certainly, we are seeing progress. Oil production has increased and it will continue to increase and I assure you that before the end of this year you will see tremendous increase in oil production,” he added
He therefore urged the Operation Delta Safe to intensify and enhance extant measures in the Niger Delta region to ensure increased oil production .
Earlier, Maj.-Gen. JH Abdussalam, General Officer Commanding (GOC), the 6 Division/ Land Component Joint Task Force South South Operation Delta Safe said that they have strengthened the fighting capability of the troops.
Abdussalam also said that robust joint measures have been put up to thwart the activities of oil thieves as well as denying freedom of action of some criminal groups like IPOB/ESE.
He reiterated the Task Force’s commitment to sustaining the anti oil theft operations until the Federal Government’s target of two million barrels per day was achieved by the end of 2024.
