The Defence Headquarters on Tuesday said that the Federal Government was ready to pull out all troops in the Niger Delta region once there were guarantees of peace and stability in the area.
It said government decided to deploy troops to the area mainly because of the unacceptable high level of criminality that was enveloping the zone.
It also alleged that the involvement of foreign elements in the criminality necessitated the deployment of the Joint Task Forces to root out all such elements and secure Nigeria’s territorial integrity.
The new Director of Defence Information, Col. Chris Jemitola stated these at a joint press briefing with the Directors of Army and Naval Information, Brig Gen Emeka Onwuamaegbu and Captain David Naibada respectively in Abuja.
Jemitola, who briefly rendered an account of the operations of the JTF in the Niger Delta, said the area was too strategic for the government to allow criminals and illegal bunkering to thrive unchecked.
“We all know how these task forces came into being.
“Let me restate that it was the unacceptable, high level of criminality in the area that led to the setting up of these task forces.
“There were a lot of criminal acts and you will agree with me today that all these have been reduced to very minimal level.
“It was an internal security challenge that the government had looked at and found it necessary to deploy troops as aids to civil authority there.
“However, once the situation is assessed and it is found that the presence of the troops is no longer required in the area, they will be withdrawn as soon as those conditions are met.”
Also speaking, Nabaida alleged that the military was brought in as a result of the involvement of foreign elements in the Niger Delta.
“Let us not forget that because of the strategic location of the Niger Delta to the Gulf of Guinea and its economic wealth, this has attracted many forces, both positive and negative.
“What is happening in the Niger Delta is that some of the criminalities have direct involvement of foreign elements. The responsibility of the military is to protect the territorial integrity of the nation and also ensure law and order.
“The economic future of this country depends on how much we secure that area. We cannot fold our arms and see criminals, especially if there are foreign elements that are involved to take charge of our economy. We cannot afford that.”
The director gave the JTF a pass mark for its ability to secure the Niger Delta and check the spread of illegal oil refineries, bunkering, and kidnappings in the area.