As the search for the 12 missing soldiers at the Niger Delta creeks continue, Rabe Abubakar, the spokesman of the Joint Task Force on Niger Delta crisis has dismissed the report that a mass grave where the missing soldiers were buried has been found.
Col. Rabe Abubakar while denying the report in a telephone interview with NEXT said that the wide spread report is just a rumour as the writers of the story did not contact the JTF for proper confirmation before putting their resource together.
According to him, the JTF is still looking for the missing soldiers which include a Lt. Colonel who were victims of militant ambush around Camp Five in Oporoza in Delta State.
“There is no mass grave; no mass grave was discovered by anybody. Rather than people (reporters) calling to confirm whenever there is any rumour, they will go ahead and start confusing the public and thereby causing panic.
“We are still looking for the soldiers, the report is not true. It’s all a means of confusing Nigerians.” Abubakar said on Friday.
The search for the missing soldiers is entering into weeks and despite the attack on Oporoza and Okerenkoko, which military troops razed in attempts to capture the militants, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta has also continued to announce series of attacks in revenge missions.
The controversial report of MEND’s attack on the Chevron facility two days ago, is just one of the recent follow-up attacks of the military recent confrontation in the region.
However, Col. Rabe Abubakar like in the previous reports confirmed the fire incident at the Chevron place, but said that MEND has only been lying to confuse the public and rebuild its lost popularity.
“They are all criminals. They are just lying, we are ready to protect the country from any further attack and that is why we are calling on every well meaning Nigerians to recognise these people as criminals. Anybody carrying guns for selfish reasons should be treated so,” Rabe said.
However, in its own response, the spokesman to MEND said that JTF is just the government weapon, aimed at destroying the community that has suffered neglect over the years.
MEND also said that it can confirm that seven more civilians were killed in cold blood on Tuesday, June 9, 2009 by the soldiers of the military Joint Task Force among many other criminal activities it is carrying out in the region.
“The seven comprising four children, one woman, an elderly man, and the boat driver were shot without warning as they approached the JTF checkpoint mounted in the inland waterway at Kangbene community in Delta state.
“These individuals had been living inside the bush and only got help to move them to Warri refugee camps when they were killed. This is one of several killings going on inside the creeks on a weekly basis.
The area has been closed to humanitarian bodies, journalists and international observers to hide the atrocities. The soldiers that carry out such indiscriminate killings happen to come mainly from Northern Nigeria.” Jomo Gbomo said.
The group said that the JTF soldiers are on drugs which continue to alter their mental status. “They are showing signs of panic attacks, frustration, hatred and depression.”