Rear Admiral Apochi Suleiman has just taken over the leadership of the strategically located Central Naval Command (CNC) of the Nigerian Navy. The CNC has its headquarters in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. Its areas of operation, perhaps, have the largest deposit of petroleum, the mainstay of Nigerian economy.
His body language indicates that he is a no-nonsense man and has a brief to confront oil theft head on without compromise.
Suleiman, a former Chief Staff Officer, Naval Training Command, Apapa, Lagos State, took over from Rear Admiral Stanley Ogoigbe, who has been redeployed to the Nigerian Navy headquarters, Abuja.
Immediately he took charge of the command, Suleiman warned commanders, officers and ratings against compromising rules of engagement in their areas of responsibilities.
He appealed to the naval personnel to be totally committed to their work and avoid actions that could tarnish the image of the Navy.
He said: “I want to reiterate here that naval personnel should work with the right attitude. They should be committed to their work to realise the mission of the Nigerian Navy and for the interest of Nigerians.
“For the commanders on ground, let me sound it loud and clear that the authorities of the Nigerian Navy will not tolerate any form of compromise on their part in carrying out their operations.
“Collaboratively, we are going to do the job set out by the Chief of Naval Staff without compromises. The Navy will not tolerate those who aid and abet criminal activities. The Nigerian Navy is paying all of us well and we must justify it and portray the force in good light. We must do our work well to achieve the mandate of the force in tackling illegalities.
“To my commanders, whether my seniors, sub-ordinates and contemporaries, I urge you all to join hands with me to achieve our collective goals. We must put the interest of the force and Nigerians at heart at all times.”
He warned against committing premeditated errors, saying that such mistakes would attract necessary sanctions.
There are indications that the character of Suleiman has strengthened the war against oil theft. The commander has, no doubt, hit the ground running. He took his campaign against oil theft to Bilabiri community in Ekeremor Local Government Area.
His troops invaded a notorious creek in the area where massive illegal deals on oil had gone on for a long time. The creek is like community of illegal refineries. The operators established six camps of illegal refineries and linked them together with big pipes.
On sighting the troops, the operators abandoned the site and fled to different directions. The troops took over the cooking site.
The troops also confiscated over N10.2 billion worth of stolen products consisting of two million litres of illegally-refined automated gas oil (AGO) and over one million barrels of stolen substances suspected to be crude oil. Six large Cotonou boats used by the suspected thieves to transport the products were impounded by the troops.
Suleiman further explained that the command achieved the feat through a tip-off. He said the oil thieves operated on a landmass of over 100 hectares and created a black market for massive illegal deals on stolen petroleum products.
He said the command deployed its patrol teams from Delta and Yenagoa to ensure daily surveillance of the camps and the impounded boats.
The Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) was accompanied to the creeks by the Deputy Command Operations, CNC, Captain Mustapha Hassan and other senior officers.
But Suleiman said destroying the camps as required by law, would lead to serious environmental pollution and detailed his men to take charge of the creek. He also ordered them to wait for further directive from the naval headquarters.
A few days after the Bilabiri raid, Suleiman’s men nabbed 11 suspected workers of an oil exploration and production company for allegedly siphoning and selling crude oil from a wellhead in Bayelsa State.
The suspected oil thieves were arrested at Eremor Field 1 at Peretorugbene town in Ekeremor Local Government Area. Suleiman said the suspects were apprehended from a vessel christened MT DERA 1.
The vessel, which belongs to the exploration and production firm, was rounded up by naval troops during a routine patrol of oil facilities in the area. The FOC said he discovered that a pipe was connected from the wellhead to the vessel.
He said the suspected thieves had already pumped crude oil valued at over 8,000 metric tonnes into the vessel when they were nabbed. Suleiman further said the oil firm was only authorised to take samples of the product from Eremor Field 1 but not to sell it out to buyers.
He said: “Eremor Field 1 is not a loading point. So, selling of the product by staff of the oil firm was illegal.
“They are only asked to take samples but from our investigation, we understand that they have been selling the product from the barge.”
The FOC revealed that the command, through investigation, discovered that members of staff of the company had sold 5,000 metric tonnes of the product. He further said the navy knew about the illegal deal when the buyer returned the product on the grounds that it was contaminated and then sued the exploration firm.
The FOC noted that the suspects were handed over to the relevant agency while signals were sent to the Navy headquarters, Abuja for further direction. He warned persons involved in illegal oil activities in the area to desist from such nefarious activities forthwith or be ready to face the full wrath of the law.
He insisted that there would be no hiding place for oil thieves within the command’s area of operation, adding that troops have intensified patrol of the creeks.
He said the Navy will continue to make illegal business of crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and sundry crimes unattractive. The FOC further warned that oil thieves should desist from all forms of illegalities and get involved in meaningful and legitimate businesses.
He was accompanied on the raid by the Commander, Nigerian Navy Ship DELTA; Commodore Aliyu Sule, Commander Nigerian Naval Base Yenagoa; Commodore Yakubu Wambai, Command Deputy Operation Officer and Navy Captain Mustapha Hassan, among other principal staff officers of the Central Naval Command.
