Barely two days after the visit of Nigeria’s Defence
Minister and the Chief of Defence Staff to
Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, the heads of
various units of the military have converged in
the city to review their operational strategy,
SaharaReporters gathered on Tuesday.
A relatively unknown militant group, Adaka Boro
Avengers, had announced last week it planned to
declare a Niger Delta Republic yesterday, the first
day of August. That turned out to be a hoax, but
it was enough to have sent the military into red
alert, resulting in the massive deployment of men
and materials to respond to any situation.
Operation Delta Safe, the joint military force
deployed to the Niger Delta, pledged on Tuesday
to remain professional and civil in dealing with
security threats by militant groups in the region.
Rear Admiral Joseph Okojie, Commander of the
operation, said the deployment of troops and
equipment that was noticed on Monday in Kaima,
in Bayelsa, was part of normal activities aimed at
keeping the region safe.
He was speaking during a media briefing in
Yenagoa following a meeting with Unit
Commanders within Operation Delta Safe.
He stressed that Nigeria belongs to all, and that
the armed forces have the freedom to be at any
part of Nigeria at any time, and are merely
operating within their mandate.
“We were in Kaima to show that Operation Delta
Safe was on the ground to ensure that the report
by some faceless organizations about creating a
‘territory’ to themselves is not allowed to happen.
“The heavy presence being noticed in parts of the
Niger Delta is part of our routine duties to
guarantee the safety of law abiding people of the
Niger Delta and ensure a conducive atmosphere
for economic activities.”
He expressed the confidence that nobody was
molested or intimidated during the exercise, and
pledged that there is no cause for alarm.
Okojie further explained that the meeting with
Component Commanders of Operation Delta Safe
was to review the achievements of the operation
to ensure that they were mission-oriented.
Meanwhile, the Adaka Boro Avengers have said
that their planned declaration has merely been
postponed.