CRUDE oil bandits whose 111 illegal refineries were destroyed, lately, by the Joint Task Force (JTF) on the Niger-Delta at Tuomo community in Burutu Local Government Area of Delta state have threatened to deal with the Commander of the Task Force, Brigadier-General Nanven Rimtip for bringing their business to a standstill.
They have also killed a man they suspected to have given the JTF information about their oil bunkering activities in the Benin River . But findings by Vanguard showed that the victim was innocent, as he was not an informant to the JTF.
A highly placed official of the JTF told Vanguard, �one of the sponsors of the oil bunkerers called our Commander on phone recently and warned him that they would make life miserable for him in the Niger-Delta for stopping their business�.
�The man told the Commander that he alone has up to 200 barges that is involved in oil business in the creek and that is what he has been doing for survival over the years, saying that if the Commander continues with his plan to stop them, they would make sure he is taken off�, he said.
Contacted on the threat, Brigadier-General Rimtip who disclosed to Vanguard, some months ago, that he was having sleepless nights over the activities of oil bunkerers in Delta State said some overtures were made to him in the past by some persons who were involved in oil bunkering, but, he told them point blank that he would not condone crude oil thieves in any guise.
On the instant case of threat, he confirmed that �somebody called me and said that I am the cause of the troubles and that he will deal with me�.
Brigadier-General Rimtip said the oil bunkerers were doing everything to stop him from carrying on with his raid and destruction of illegal refineries, accusing him of blocking the waterways, but, he vowed, �Nothing will make me stop, I am here to stop their illegal activities, no amount of threat or blackmail by them will deter me�.
He said it was a rude awakening to him that the crude oil baron who called him on phone had the effrontery to ask him (Commander) what he expected him to do to survive if his oil bunkering business was stopped.
The JTF boss stated that the task force was on the trail of the particular baron, but, was quick to add, �We are not after his life, I don�t think he knows the havoc he is causing to the people who live in the area they are doing this bunkering, we are after stopping the business and nothing more. It cannot thrive as long as I am here�.
Asked yesterday if he heard or knew about a man, suspected to be an informant to the JTF by oil bunkerers in the Benin River , Brigadier-General Rimtip said he was aware of the incident and corroborated Vanguard�s findings that the man was an informant to the task force.
The JTF on Monday in a cordon and search operation pursued the gunmen who attacked its men at its location in Bomadi area of Delta state over the closure of illegal crude oil refineries to Agge community in Bayelsa sate but the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) in a statement, signed by Jomo Gbomo, yesterday, condemned an alleged wanton destruction of lives and property in the impoverished Ijaw community of Agge �by the cowardly men of the military Joint Task Force on August 4, 2008�
�No where in the world except during the Nazi regime and Bosnia war do soldiers destroy whole villages because of the sins of a few men. It is unfortunate that an already neglected community of impoverished fishermen would have their mud houses, fishing nets and canoes destroyed in the army�s search for �criminals�.
�The operation lacked tactics and professionalism, resembling that of drunken bulls on a rampage. Shots from heavy caliber machine guns were being fired as they were approaching the community not considering the safety of innocent children, babies, elderly and women who ended up the victims of stray bullets without the invaders accomplishing its intended mission.
None of the victims received any form of emergency medical service for the trauma and many simply bled to death.
�While MEND will not support criminality, we will advice the JTF to investigate and plan properly before going for an arrest. By simply watching Dallas SWAT on television, they can learn a lot that raids are narrowed to one house and not the entire neighborhood�, he said.