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Tag: Nigerian Navy (NN)

  • Navy’s Western Command cleans Lagos communities

    Navy’s Western Command cleans Lagos communities

    As part of activities to mark the 69th anniversary of the Nigerian Navy (NN), the Western Naval Command (WNC) at the weekend embarked on environmental sanitation within Apapa and environs.

    Naval operatives cleared debris defacing Aremu Junction, Trailer Park, and Marine Beach in Olodi-Apapa and Ijora to promote a cleaner and healthier environment.

    Supervised by officials of the Lagos State Ministry of Environment, sanitary workers from Lagos State Waste Management Agency (LAWMA), Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps (KAI), Lagos State Water Management Office (LAWMO), Office of Environmental Services, and Office of Drainage Services also participated.

    Flag Officer Commanding (FOC), WNC, Rear Admiral Michael Oamen, said the exercise was a vital part of the Navy’s civil-military relations.

    He noted that it aligned with the strategic directive of the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, adding that it reflected the Navy’s commitment to its host communities.

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    Oamen emphasised the Navy’s role as a stakeholder in Apapa and its support for the state government’s goal of fostering a clean, business friendly environment.

    Similarly, Special Adviser to Lagos Governor on Environment, Kunle Rotimi Akodu, acknowledged the initiative by the Navy, noting that the efforts signal a united front in addressing public hygiene and environmental sustainability.

    Chairman of Apapa Local Government, Idowu Adejumoke Senbanjo, expressed gratitude to the Navy, urging other government bodies to follow suit.

    During the exercise, participants unclogged drainage systems, cleared solid waste, and sensitised residents and traders on best practices in waste disposal.

  • Navy conducts exercise to test sea amphibious capacity 

    Navy conducts exercise to test sea amphibious capacity 

    To showcase its lift and beach landing capacities, the Nigerian Navy (NN) at the weekend flagged off an amphibious exercise codenamed CROCODILE LIFT.

    The exercise, aimed at supporting maritime security operations for the attainment of shared prosperity and development, was launched at the Naval Base in Apapa, Lagos.

    Flagging off the three-day exercise, Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ikechukwu Ogalla, said it was facilitated by the French.

    Ogalla, who was represented by the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC), Naval Doctrine Command (NAVDOC), Rear Admiral SU Gombe, noted the similarity of the exercise to the just concluded Grand African NEMO save for the fact that CROCODILE LIFT would focus on developing skills for  amphibious operations.

    “The exercise also presents an opportunity for partners with a shared understanding of our security objectives to deploy  African-led solutions to transborder threats and challenges to enhance regional security,” the CNS said.

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    Challenging the participants to  leverage the exercise platform for the achievement of its objectives, Ogalla urged them to be focused, dedicated and professional, as well as build  partnerships that could lead to future exercises with more foreign navies. 

    He emphasized the need for more training and collaboration for effective security of Nigeria’s maritime environment.

    “Let me also use this opportunity to reaffirm our commitment and readiness to enhance regional collaboration towards ensuring the safety and securing of the common maritime space for prosperous economic activities. 

    “The efforts of the Nigerian Navy, regional allies and international partners towards ensuring the overall regional maritime security was evident during the recently concluded Ex GRAND AFRICAN NEMO 2024.

    “We also stand ready as always to provide adequate support to sister Services and other security agencies as appropriate. The Nigerian Navy remains resolute in the sustained fight against crude oil theft, piracy, illicit trafficking and other maritime crimes, which is part of our policing role. 

    “Furthermore, being the nation’s maritime sentinel we remain relentless in the task of fostering a safe and secure maritime environment that engenders a thriving blue economy for enhanced prosperity for all Nigerians. 

    “In this regard, the Nigerian Navy will continue to remain a highly professional and dedicated military service to be proud of by all well-meaning Nigerians as well as international partners,” he said.

    Earlier in his remarks, the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC), Western Naval Command (WNC), Rear Admiral Monday Oamen, said the exercise was planned to enable freedom of navigation in the Gulf of Guinea by strengthening coordination in the fight against maritime insecurity.

    “Accordingly, the objective of the year 2024 iteration is the creation of a safe and secure maritime domain through the simulation of an amphibious operations towards safeguarding the Gulf of Guinea against piracy, sea robbery, crude oil theft, and other forms of criminalities. 

    “During this year’s exercise, the Nigerian Navy will be conducting a combined amphibious operation in collaboration with the French Navy. On its part, the NN will deploy 2 ships (NNS KADA supported by DB ABUJA), 2  Special Boat Service detachments and 2 helicopters. 

    “I have absolutely no doubt that the sea manoeuvers and amphibious training scenarios that will be conducted will showcase the skills of participants in efforts towards maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea,” he said.

  • How wrecks on waterways fuel piracy, accidents

    When a Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG)-laden tanker Navigator Capricorn was attacked on August 17 by suspected pirates at position 03 33N 006 40E, approximately 56nm South of Bonny Island in Rivers State, not many knew the criminals had monitored the vessel from a shipwreck along the Bonny Creeks before she left harbour on a voyage to Lagos.

    The pirates, who fled as a result of the presence of a Nigerian Navy (NN) warship that responded to a distress call from the oil tanker, had pretended to be working on-board the shipwreck before they launched the attack on the target vessel.

    Few days ago, a Cameroon-bound passenger ship capsised few hours after leaving the Terminal C Jetty of the Calabar Port with over 100 passengers on board. Although the cause of the accident was yet unknown, there are fears that the ship might have rammed into a wreck along its route, resulting in the unfortunate incident.

    Instances abound where illegal oil bunkers, illegal fishers used these wrecks as anchor for their ships in order to buy time and carry out their criminal acts.

    The dangers posed to mariners across the country’s waterways were, Tuesday last week, brought to the fore after the Nigerian Navy (NN) raised the alarm over the presence of several wreckages on the country’s waters and the security, safety risks they pose.

    From Rivers, Bayelsa, Cross River through to Lagos, it is becoming increasingly difficult for ships to leave jetties in response to distress calls in good time without hitting these obstructions that ground vessels and endanger lives.

    Aside being good places for sea robbers and pirates to hibernate,  these wrecks which are remains of sunken, stranded ships or their parts in the sea constitute environmental pollution and defaces the country’s waterways.

    Findings by Niger Delta Report revealed that the NN Hydrography Department was making plans to commence survey of the Southsouth waterways in order to locate these wrecks so that agencies responsible for clearing them would move in.

    Already, the department had surveyed the Lagos Port and Badagry Creek channels of the Western Waters where 35 wrecks, including masts, ships and obstructions constituting threats to mariners.

    According to the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command (WNC) Rear Admiral Oladele, some of the wrecks show part of the hull or superstructure at the level of the chart datum. In others only the masts were visible while there are those not submerged whose depths were unknown.

    He lamented that an NN warship NNS CALABAR recently suffered great damage around the Kirikiri channel after ramming into a submerged shipwreck in an attempt to avoid a big vessel that was dodging another wreck inward harbour.

    As a result of the accident, NNS CALABAR’s base was serially perforated; causing damage to its keel. It was gathered that the navy’s concerns was further heightened penultimate Wednesday following the fire outbreak on board an oil tanker MT SEA VOYAGER around the Lagos anchorage area.

    Despite the closeness of the vessel to harbour, the NN could not deploy any other warship to respond to the incident and rescue the 11 Pakistani crew members on board because of the time that would have been lost avoiding the wrecks to navigate from Navy Town or Apapa Jetty to the burning ship.

    “The hazard associated with submerged wrecks in our body of waters is huge. These wrecks are littered along the waterways and constitute navigational hazards as well as endanger safety of shipping.

    “Similarly, in times of distress calls, it becomes increasingly difficult for agencies responsible for such rescue operation to quickly react, especially at night, or in poor and restricted visibility.

    “The Navy was able to swiftly react to the fire incident on MT SEA VOYAGER because NNS EKULU was on patrol at sea that night.

    “As such, it was easy to vector her for the rescue operation. If the ship was to be deployed from its base in Navy Town, it would not have been that swift, considering the danger of maneuvering through these wrecks at that hour of the day.

    “Fortunately, the hydrographic office of the Nigerian Navy, in line with its mandate, has identified and resurveyed these wrecks for ease of salvage. It will therefore be necessary for appropriate authorities to take urgent action in the removal of these wrecks in our waterways,” said Daji, who led reporters on a tour of some affected areas along Lagos channel.

    Daji noted that delay in prosecution of arrested vessels was also responsible for some of the vessels littering the channels.

    Aside the wrecks, Daji said the absence of navigational aids such as buoys (anchored irons with red or green flags on them indicating the depth of the water for ships) was also posing threats to mariners.

    “This constitutes navigational risks, especially at night or during restricted visibility. Urgent replacement or servicing of these navigational aids will greatly assist safe navigation, particularly in times of emergencies.

    “The Nigerian Navy, in carrying out its statutory responsibilities, will collaborate with all relevant stakeholders to ensure safety and security of the waterways and secure environment for the prosperity of our country in general,” Daji said.

    Although the FOC declined mentioning the agencies that were responsible for the clearing of wrecks on the country’s waterways, checks by Niger Delta Report revealed that the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) were so obligated.

    According to the spokesman for NPA, Adams Jato, the agency was only responsible for clearance of wrecks within its channel- Port areas.

    “We have started removing wrecks from areas that are critical to our channel and we commission consultants to clear them. Anything out of our area of concern is cleared by other agencies.

  • Navy decries alarming wreckage on Lagos water channels

    The Nigerian Navy (NN) on Tuesday raised alarm over wrecked and abandoned ships, boats obstructing navigation around the Lagos channels of the country’s waterways.

    Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command (WNC) Rear Admiral Oladele Daji who took reporters for on-the-spot analysis of the threats, said the navy was forced to cry out having written several times to the agencies charged with clearing the channels without result.

    He said the areas most affected were the Tincan Island, Kirikiri, Navy Town and Badagry creek areas of the channel.

    According to the Admiral, the navy had identified about 35 of such wrecks which were submerged along the very busy Lagos channel constituting grave danger to ships and crew.

    “The hazards associated with these wrecks is that most often especially during high water, they are submerged and hardly visible to mariners and therefore they pose the greatest threats during this period.

    “Apart from endangering shipping, most of the wrecks also constitute, environmental pollution and hazards.

    “I do not think it portrays us as a country with laws and regulations in good light especially to the global shipping community. In addition, there are several navigational aids like the boyle,  markings, light that are not functional or missing or have shifted from their original positions.

    “The absence of these navigational aids also constitute risk to shipping, especially at night or during restricted visibilities.

    Read Also: Navy nabs five suspected smugglers

    “Recall that just a few months ago, one of our vessels, Nigerian Navy Ship(NNS) Calabar while moving for patrols was involved in mishap. It struck a submerged wreck, just in the middle of the channel.

    “You will all agree with me that this could be avoided if those wrecks were promptly removed when they were identified. We have written to the authorities concern and we are hoping that actions would be taken to clear our channels of those wreckages so that ships can easily move in and out of harbour to respond to emergencies.

    “It would as well save us the money, resources that would be put into making that affected vessel operational which would have been deployed into better and more productive endeavours.

    “Other vessels apart from NNS Calabar have also suffered similar thing in the past,” he said.

     

  • Navy arrest 19 suspects, recovers five boats, 168 drums of AGO

    Operatives of the Nigerian Navy (NN) on Wednesday arrested 19 suspected oil thieves including two women and recovered five boats laden with 168 drums of 300 litre each of AGO.

    The arrests were made by a team comprising operatives from Naval Headquarters and Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Pathfinder around Bakana creeks, a notorious hideout for the syndicate engaged in illegal refining of petroleum products.

    The team which was conducting select journalists on educational tour of Niger Delta creeks to showcase efforts of the NN in combating the menace intercepted the boats at different locations along the Bakana river which empties into the Atlantic ocean.

    Among the suspects were Okechuwkwu Echelonu, Gift Emmanuel, Justina Patani, Moses Elijah, Emmanuel Manase, Joshua Ahi, Lucky Sam and Iliyasu Ibrahim.

    Leading a convoy of five boats to the creek for on-the-spot assessment of an illegal refinery camp destroyed by the navy last December, the Director Naval Information (DINFO) Commodore Suleiman Dahun and Base Operation Officer (BOO) Commander Muritala Rogo patrolled adjoining channels of the river where some of the boats were recovered.

    The Nation reports that upon sighting the naval gunboats, three of the suspects in two different boats dived into the river unclad, abandoning their boats and cargo.

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    Twelve of the suspects comprising 10 men and two women on three boats claimed they were working for one Madam who’s based in Port Harcourt.

    Prior to the tour to the creek, Commander Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) PATHFINDER  Commodore Sam Bora who addressed journalists by the jetty said the security situation in the base’s area of operation (AOO) could best be assessed as unpredictable, attributing same to upsurge in agitations from various militant groups and conducts of some desperate politicians.

    “These groups in their desperation to acquire power at all cost use dubious means including employment of thugs to threaten the peaceful political climate as well as safety and security of lives and properties in the state. The fall out of this reprehensible conduct is the recent cases of reported killings and kidnappings perpetrated by cult groups and other criminals in the state.

    “Notwithstanding, the base has restrategies and emplaced measures that would ensure the safety and security of lawful activities within its AOO…

    “Operations against crude oil theft, illegal bunkering and other maritime criminalities in the last six months have witnessed the deployment of an average of 10 gunboats and 18 private maritime logistics support company vessels for sustained patrols monthly.

    “This led to the arrest of eight vessels, 18 barges, 42 wooden boats and 38 suspects within the period under review. Similarly, 70 illegal refinery sites with several storage tanks and dugout pits laden with over 4,300mt of suspected stolen crude oil as well as over 2,191mt of illegally refined AGO were destroyed.

    “Additionally, 21 fibre boats, three trucks and tankers, 18 outboard engines, 16 generators, 12 welding machines and 36 pumping machines were recovered within the same period.”

    One of the suspects arrested yesterday who gave his name as David said his boat was carrying 17 drums, claiming that he was sent by one Madam Joy in Port Harcourt who paid him N15,000 per return trip.

    He said: “I have been doing this for three months now. We work for Madam Joy. I am from Bayelsa State. I know it is bad but I do not have work.

    “We buy a drum from Bakana creek for N9, 000. We are paid N15, 000 each to move them to Port Harcourt,c he said.

    Elijah, 19, said he started four-months-ago because he lost his mother and had to fend for two yoinger siblings.

    “I am from Andoni in Rivers. My mother was a single mother. When she died, she left two siblings in my care and also work to pay my school fees. I had to work for one woman called Mama. She sends us to the creeks to buy diesel. She owns the boats and drums.

    “My job is to open the drums for those who sell to pass the content through a hose and thereafter, cover the drums when they are done. I have been doing this for four months to pay my siblings school fees. One of them is in Primary 3 and the other is in Primary 4. My madam pays me N4,000 per trip.”

    A woman, Patani, 31, who claimed to be a widow and mother of two said she was into the illegal trade to cater for her children.

    She said she came from Bayelsa State with her niece Gift Emmnuel, adding that she made a minimum of N5,000 per drum.

    Patani said the boat she was caught on was laden with 20 big drums.

    “My husband died, leaving me with two children. I have been living from hand to mouth until someone introduced me to this business. I was told it was lucrative.

    “First, I rented a boat and an engine for N10,000 and headed for Port Harcourt. Someone brought me to the bush to buy the product. I bought a drum for N9,000 and sold between N12,000 and N15,000, depending on the buyer’s bargaining power,” she said.

    Ahi who dived into the river as the boat was entering jetty but was surrounded by naval personnel claimed he was under distress to pay his house rent and did not have another way to get the money.

    Asked why he attempted an escape, Ahi said: “I was scared. I am a transporter. I was only hired by some people. I have never done this before. They said they would pay me N4000 at the end of the trip.

    Ibrahim, 17, a native of Kano State said: “I have only been there three times and I was paid N5000. I wanted to use the money to transport myself back to Kano. I appeal to the navy to forgive me. All they should do is to add to the N5,000 so that I will be able to go back to Kano.”

  • Navy destroys 2,829 firearms surrendered by ex-Ondo militants, others

    The Nigerian Navy (NN) on Thursday started the manual destruction of 2,829 firearms recovered from participants in Ondo State Amnesty Programme and unserviceable weapons belonging to the service.

    The Nation reports that 475 of the firearms were service rifles of the Navy which were no longer useable, while 2,281 others were recovered last year from repentant militants in Ondo State.

    The exercise, which was organised by the Naval Ordinance Depot (NOD), Ojo, Lagos State, following an approval by the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, was the first since the depot’s establishment in 1966.

    According to the Admiral Superintendent NOD, Rear Admiral Abdul Adamu, the weapons comprises of 2,108 single-barrelled rifles, 57 units of double-barrelled rifles, 189 short guns, 187 FN (Fabrique Nationale) rifles, 215 SIG (Schweitzerische Industrie-Gasellschaft) rifles and 73 SMGs (sub-machine guns).

    “The depot was established in 1966 as a strategic naval establishment primarily responsible for the storage and issuance of arms and ammunition to NN fleet and establishments.

    “Its overtime roles expanded to include installation, servicing and on-demand maintenance of arms on board NN ships. The depot also caters for sister services in storing their ordinances from time to time.

    “The naval headquarters recently authorized the depot to destroy the unserviceable weapons, which comprised weapons seized from repentant militants by the Ondo State Amnesty Programme and unserviceable NN weapons. These consist of 2,108 single barrel rifles, 57 units of double-barrelled rifles, 189 short guns, 187 FN rifles, 215 SIG rifles and 73 SMGs, which are earmarked for destruction during this exercise.

    “It is also significant to state that the exercise will be conducted for two days to ensure that the weapons are rendered unusable. This would involve cutting of the barrels into tiny unusable pieces and finally burying the pieced weapons in a dug hole at the depot.

    “It is believed that this approach will permanently deny criminals and miscreants access to the seized weapons, which could pose security threats to the society.

    “Solving the problem of firearms proliferation is not for security agencies alone. These criminals are subsets of the society. Thankfully, the President has signed into law a bill that prohibits bearing of arms. The police are doing well in arresting and parading the local manufacturers as we usually see in the media.

    Read Also: Navy arrests boats carrying 170 ‘smuggled’ turkeys

    “What the Navy has done with this exercise is another great step to stop the weapons from finding their way back into the society. So, I recommend that sister security services with such arms in their armouries or inventory should destroy them so that bad eggs within the system do not recycle these firearms back into the society and put them in the hands of these criminals.

    “In the custody of the Navy today, this is all we have to destroy. As you know, security is dynamic and these criminals keep evolving. But we are not sleeping also. Definitely, as we arrest them in future, I am sure the Navy will also approve their destruction.”

    The CNS, who was represented by Director of Arms Naval Headquarters, Rear Admiral Danjuma Dongoyaru, decried the proliferation of firearms.

    He noted that the destruction was part of measures to curb the menace.

    Acknowledging there were other use the metals could be put to, he said the navy didn’t want to take chances that could make the weapons land in the hands of criminals again.

    “There are other uses for the metals but we do not want to take chances. We do not want a situation whereby they will get into wrong hands and are fabricated again.

    “Moreover, in the process of disarmament, after you have seized the weapons you must destroy them even if they are brand new.

    “We see daily seizures by the security agencies. A lot of weapons are being displayed but I can tell you that is just a tip of the iceberg. Destroying these weapons is a means to curb firearms proliferation.

    “Allowing them find their way back into the society will amount to fetching water with a basket. What we expect is for other security services with such arms in their custody to also destroy them,” he said.

  • Navy arrests boats carrying 170 ‘smuggled’ turkeys

    Operatives of the Nigerian Navy (NN) on Wednesday arrested five wooden boats allegedly carrying 170 cartons of suspected smuggled turkey.

    The arrests followed a raid of creeks between Gbaji and Badagry by operatives attached to the Forward Operations Base (FOB) in Badagry, Lagos State.

    It was gathered that the frozen turkeys, which were carefully concealed in the boats, were being smuggled into Nigeria from Benin Republic

    Handing over the intercepted boats and products to officials from Western Marine, Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), the FOB Commander Captain Tamuno Senibo said they were seized on the Badagry waterways around 1 a.m while naval men were on patrol.

    Senibo said on sighting the naval men, the criminals jumped into the water and swam away.

    “The action of my men goes to show that the fracas, which originally existed between the military and paramilitary, is now a thing of the past. The Harmonised Standard Operating Procedure (HSOP) recently launched by the President is working.

    “It is based on that we went after the smugglers, seized their items and now we are handing over the seized items to the Customs, in line with our roles to assist other government agencies at peace time.

    “Similarly, on March 20, last year, we handed over 6,000 kilogrammes of weeds suspected to be cannabis, allegedly being smuggled into Nigeria. The seized items were also handed over to officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for further investigation and prosecution.

    “We also handed over 300 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol, to operatives of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).

    Read Also: Navy gets standard jetty 15 years after

    “My advice to criminals is for them to stay away from the country’s waterways as there will no longer be any hiding place for them. They should turn a new leaf in their own interest.”

    Deputy Superintendent of Customs, Augustine Ajero, who led a team of officers to take over the seized products, urged the naval men not to relent.

    He appealed to them to go after the criminals because smugglers now know patrol boats belonging to NCS Marine and usually disappeared whenever they sighted them.

     

  • Navy gets standard jetty 15 years after

    Fifteen years after its jetty suffered dilapidation, the Nigerian Navy (NN) on Friday inaugurated a replacement at the NNS BEECROFT in Apapa, Lagos.

    Also inaugurated were the Navy’s third locally built boat, a 25-man House Boat, 26 vehicles including 10 Liberty buses and 16 Hilux trucks, as well as the remodeled Naval Dockyard Limited Apprentice School, Victoria Island.

    The inaugurations which were performed by the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Defence, Mrs Naratu Batagarawa, were  part of activities to celebrate the NN’s 63rd anniversary.

    Mrs. Batagarawa commended the NN for the strides recorded in the past four years in the areas of manpower development, availability of platforms for sustained operations and improved welfare for its personnel.

    She charged the navy to take adequate steps at providing needed capacity to help build the nation.

    “The Nigerian Navy is expected to maintain the required presence that would ensure adequate protection of our sea lines of commerce and communication which are vital to our national survival.

    “Specifically, the prevention or at least reduction to the barest minimum of all forms of illegal economic activities particularly crude oil theft as well as the protection of the environment from pollution also presents formidable challenges.

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    “These for me will continue to be areas of emphasis as we move to a brighter future of economic prosperity, political stability and technological development,” she said.

    Earlier, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, said the completion of the jetty and other projects were part of the navy’s broader goal encapsulated in its transformation plan 2011-2020 detailed to cover operations, fleet renewal  logistics, human resource management and administration.

    He said the Houseboat would be one of a series, designed to complement existing houseboats, as part of the NN choke point strategy in compliance with presidential directives.

    “As part of effort to enhance transportation and welfare of personnel, about 130 assorted vehicles, including trucks, buses, ambulances were procured within the past year.

    “I am glad to note that the NN had made giant strides in the last four years with commensurate improvement in the availability of platforms for sustained operations, manpower development and welfare, as well as notable presence in the nation’s security architecture within the Gulf of Guinea (GoG).

    “Our desire is to bequeath to the future generations, a navy that is operationally capable and administratively responsive in the task of securing our maritime domain and fulfilling other assigned tasks.’’

     

  • Navy takes war to kidnappers, others

    To ensure that kidnapping and hostage taking do not reign in riverine areas, the Nigerian Navy (NN) said on Tuesday that it was taking the battle to the enclaves of the criminals.

    Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command (WNC) Rear Admiral Oladele Daji stated this in an interview shortly after assuming headship of the command.

    Daji, who took over the mantle of leadership as the 39th FOC from Rear Admiral Obed Ngalabak, said the NN had already identified the hideouts of the criminals and was battle ready to smoke them out

    He was reacting to a question on the seeming resurge of kidnapping and armed banditry in the Southwest, especially in riverine areas of Ikorodu and Epe in Lagos State, as well as Ogun and Ondo states, which fall within the command’s area of responsibility.

    Read Also: Navy takes war to kidnappers, others

    The admiral said steps had been taken to flush out the criminals from their hideouts.

    “We are so lucky in the military in that our roles and tasks have been defined and cut out for us. For the Navy, we are guided by the vision and mission of the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), as well as the strategic directives.

    “Just as the outgone FOC mentioned, the command has strived over the years to deliver on its mandate. What we are only coming to do is build upon, bring fresh ideas into some of the challenges we have in the maritime expanse.

    “Luckily for us, the Federal Government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari has been able to acquire more boats for us to patrol. This is not to say we have enough to cover our vast maritime space, but with what we have and the strategy of using the Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA), we will ensure the assets provided for us are effectively used to accomplish the tasks ahead.

    “The data we have at the Naval Headquarters show that kidnapping is on the decline. Perhaps, there are one or two cases with prominence, which makes it seem as though it is on the increase. It is actually on the decline.

    “That notwithstanding, the FOC briefed me

  • Navy records 34 piracy, 20 sea robbery attacks last year

    Thirty-four piracy and 20 sea robbery attacks were recorded in the nation’s maritime domain last year, the Nigerian Navy (NN) said on Monday.

    Also 46 vessels, barges and 31 big wooden boats were impounded within the period under review, said Chief of Training and Operations (CTOPS) Rear Admiral Mackson Kadiri.

    Kadiri spoke in Abuja at a briefing with reporters were the navy’s scorecard for 2018 was presented.

    He noted that various exercises being organised by the NN had led to the reduction in maritime crimes especially piracy, adding that there was no attack in June and Agust, while one was recorded each in July, October and December last year.

    He said: “The recorded cases of attacks on shipping have been mainly along the coasts of Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers States. The few cases of attacks on shipping are indicative of the efforts of the NN.

    “It is also gratifying to report that there has been significant reduction in the cases of attack on Oil and Gas Installations (OGI). The few attacks recorded took place in the swamp/onshore areas, with none reported against OGI located offshore during the year in focus.

    “As records indicate, from January to December 2018, a total of 34 pirates’ attacks on shipping were reported with nine successful and 25 unsuccessful. Furthermore, a total of 20 sea robbery attacks were reported in 2018 out of which six were successful and 14 unsuccessful.

    “Since the inception of Operation TSARE TEKU in April 2016, there has been drastic reduction in reported incidents of attack with even fewer successful attacks. Additionally, a total of 46 vessels and barges were arrested for involvement in maritime crimes during the period under review.

    “These are indications that the operation has contributed to a significant improvement in security of shipping in Nigeria’s maritime environment.”

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    According to Kadiri, the NN was in the process of rounding up the fifth phase of Exercise TSARE TEKU and would flag-off the sixth.

    Since most of the attacks at sea originate from land, Kadiri said the NN had since March 2016, emplaced a Choke Point Management and Control Regime which allows the deployment of armed personnel to strategic locations within creeks in houseboat.

    “So far, nine houseboats otherwise known as Naval Security Stations (NSS) have been deployed where crude oil theft and illegal refining activities are known to be prevalent. More locations have been identified for deployment of NSSs in this 2019.

    “Several arrests and destruction of barges and other vessels used for conveying stolen crude oil and illegally refined products have been made through this Choke Point Management regime. For instance, a total of 31 large wooden boats were arrested for involvement in illegalities in 2018 while 176 large wooden boats were destroyed within the same period.”

    Highlighting other exercises carried out by the NN and their gains, Kadiri said Operation River Sweep conducted mostly in Delta and Rivers States destroyed 637 illegal refining sites, apprehended 104 speed boats and 340 suspects last year.

    “In summary, the quantity of crude oil lost as a result of illegal refining activities in 2018 is about 277,040 barrels, while about 23.1 Million litres of AGO, 212,610 litres of PMS and 1.2 Million litres of DPK were also lost,” said Kadiri.

    The achievements notwithstanding, Kadiri stated the need for more funding for the NN in view of various ship rehabilitation/repair programmes geared towards operational availability of capital ships to enable the service meet its statutory responsibilities. He said the NN would require more Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs), helicopters and predator drones as immediate intervention.

    “While noting the nexus between the successes and the availability of adequate resources, including international and regional collaboration, there is still need to address some outstanding issues and capability gaps affecting NN operations.

    “The need for NNPC to impress on oil companies to emplace more effective surveillance/monitoring mechanisms on their crude oil pipeline networks is also necessary. Going forward, the Nigerian Navy remains committed and resolute in ensuring safer waterways and sea lanes for Nigeria’s economy to thrive,” he said.