The Nigerian Navy said it has saved the country over N200 million being the value of stolen crude oil it recovered from two foreign vessels, which has scooped oil illegally from the country’s oil facility in the Niger Delta.
The outgoing Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Yakubu Wambai, who made the disclosure, said the deployment of ships for patrols during his tenure led to many arrests, notably among which was the arrest of MV TOKONI, which was ladened with over 500 thousand litres of stolen crude oil worth about N281,708,450.
Admiral Wambai, while handing over the reign of command to a new FOC, Rear Admiral Joseph Akpan, said apart from MV TOKONI, the command also arrested other vessels, including MT ALEXANDER J laden with 528.95MT of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and MT MV Platform Care 2 ladened with over 100 thousand litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO).
The outgoing FOC said the navy also intercepted no fewer than 463 parcels and 100 parcels of cannabis sativa at Ibeju Lekki and Badagry, respectively, estimated valued at N1 billion.
He said: “The Command also participates in OP AWATSE, where successes were achieved, for instance several arrests were made, amongst which are the arrest of four tankers and number of vans loaded with illegal bunkers as well as suspects at the Oregun general area of Lagos State.
“Also, stolen petroleum products being smuggled at the creek of Ojodu Berger in Lagos State were recovered. Others are the arrest of suspects conveying illegally bunked petroleum products in vehicles and the arrest of suspected pipeline vandals.
“Our troops also intercepted and arrested a tanker as well as suspects diverting 53,000 litres of PMS and illegally smuggled petroleum products at various petroleum stations. Albeit, the, hitherto, System 2B pipeline that was shut down for about 18 months is now open and pumping has commenced to Satellite Town, hence, OP AWATSE is achieving a core mandate.”
Admiral Wambai said the participation of the Western Naval Command troops in Operation AWATSE had assisted greatly in curtailing criminal activities in Lagos and environs, adding that conscious efforts were also being made to sustain the achievements recorded in this regard.
He said: “Additionally, the combined surveillance efforts of NAB OJO and MDA systems enhanced the command’s drive in sustaining presence at sea and making it difficult for criminals to have freedom of action at sea.
“Despite the limited number of capital ships under command, the command has continued to deliver on the mandate of the CNS within its AOR.
Pertinently, these efforts aided in curbing illegalities within WNC AOR as evidenced in drastic reduction of sea robbery, piracy or hijacking of vessels and other maritime crime.
“I can state that in the past 20 months, no attack took place in Nigerian waters. This achievement was acknowledged by the International Maritime Bureau in their report of March 3, 2022, which removed Nigeria from the list of nations of high piracy risks/robbery in international waters.”
Earlier, during a farewell dinner, Admiral Wambai urged the personnel of the command to support the incoming FOC, Rear Admiral Joseph Akpan, and also render unalloyed loyalty to Nigeria. He said the success he achieved would not have been possible without support from the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo, adding that “we successfully keyed into the vision and mission of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral AZ Gambo, and worked in line with the Strategic Directive 05 – 2021, to ensure that our decisions and actions are in tandem with Nigerian Navy Pillars of Transformation.”