The Governor of Bayelsa
State, Mr. Seriake Dickson,
has cautioned the new
Commander of the Federal
Government security outfit in
the Niger Delta, Operation
Delta Safe, to be
professional in addressing
security challenges in the
region.
The Governor gave the
warning when he received
the new commander of ODS,
Rear Admiral Joseph Okojie,
a statement in Yenagoa on
Friday by his Chief Press
Secretary, Daniel Iworiso-
Markson, has said.
Dickson emphasised the need
for the law enforcement
agents to be neutral in
dealing with criminal
activities.
While commending the
Federal Government for
retaining the headquarters
of the Operation Delta Safe in
Bayelsa, Dickson said the
security outfit, especially its
maritime component, had a
crucial role to play, as the
state is predominantly
riverine in nature.
Dickson, who expressed
confidence in the ability of
the officers and men of the
new command, called for
non-interference in their
activities in the interest of
national peace and stability,
saying the Niger Delta
occupies strategic position in
the country.
He said the state
government on its part would
continue to support security
agencies in the fight against
criminality and brigandage
such as kidnapping, piracy
and the wilful destruction of
strategic national assets,
with its attendant
degradation of the
environment.
Paying tribute to all the
commanders of the defunct
Operation Pulo Shield for
their contributions to the
peace in the region, Dickson
said dialogue remained the
best option to resolving the
security issues in the area.
In his remarks, Okojie said
the Federal Government
deemed it necessary to re-
engineer the security outfit
as part of the efforts to
tackle insecurity effectively
in the country.
According to Okojie, the task
of achieving enduring peace
and stability, remains a joint
effort involving the
governments, community
leaders and other
stakeholders of the affected
states, particularly in the
maritime areas covered by
ODS mandate.
The new Commander, who
resumed duty on June 26,
2016, allayed people’s fears,
saying that the outfit would
adopt a holistic approach in
maintaining law and order
rather than use brute force.
He, however, warned
criminal-minded individuals to
steer clear of the region as
the ODS has acquired
adequate resources to deal
decisively with those bent on
sabotaging the government’s
efforts towards promoting
economic growth and
prosperity.