300 illegal refineries in Niger Delta – Defence chief

They also disclosed that the refineries had been serving as sources of fund generation by the militants for purchase of arms and ammunition.

Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Paul Dike, made this known in Abuja during a meeting he held with members of the House of Representatives on the security situation in Niger Delta, stressing that the militants had for long been using the illegal refineries to process stolen crude oil.

Against this background, the House of Representatives Committee Chairman on Niger Delta, after meeting with the defence chief, disclosed that his committee had scheduled a meeting with Vice President Goodluck Jonathan tomorrow to discuss issues about the Niger Delta Ministry just created by the Federal Government.

He said much as the Federal Government desired that the Niger Delta Ministry would serve as a catalyst to addressing the crisis in the oil-rich region, the sum of N50 billion it voted for the take-off of the ministry has been a major source of concern.

Dike, who painted a worrisome picture of the situation in the Niger Delta and the inability of the military to immediately solve the problem of youths restiveness in the zone, admitted that illegal bunkering had been affecting the economic growth of Nigeria.

“Those bunkered products are either processed through over 300 illegal small refineries or sold out as crude to foreign vessels at give away prices,” he said.

Dike, who was represented by the Chief of Policy and Plans at the Defence Headquarters, Air Vice Marshall B. G. Danbaba, said there were over 400 unlicensed and illegal jetties spread over the Niger Delta.

According to him, the failure of security agencies to prosecute illegal oil bunkerers had put the lives of citizens and even security personnel operating in the area at a risk, requesting that the new Niger Delta ministry should make efforts to mop up arms and ammunition from the militants by offering them jobs.