Smarting from the recent killing of its service men in Okuama, Delta State, the Defence Headquarters is undeterred hence a major manhunt for eight suspected persons as troops in one week neutralized 212 terrorists, arrested 252 persons while rescuing 244 kidnap victims and impounding N1, 050, 715, 260.00 worth of stolen oil in the oil-rich Niger Delta region.
Reiterating that 2024 remained a hot year for criminals in the country, the Nigerian military has restated its determination never back down in the face of some untoward developments in parts of the country but it maintained that the recent killings of its service men while on a peace mission in Delta State would never happen again.
Director, Defence Media Operations at the Defence Headquarters (DHQ), Major General Edward Buba disclosed this on Thursday at a regular bi-weekly media briefing on activities and successes of the military in the various theaters of operations across all the six geo-political zones of the country.
He announced the decision of the military to declare eight persons wanted in connection with the killing of 17 Nigerian Army soldiers that were on duty to broker peace between the warring communities of Okoloba and Okuama in Delta State.
Those declared wanted are: Akpeywru Daniel Omotegbono (AKA Amagbem), Prof. Ekpekpo Arthur a Professor of Physics, Andaowei Dennis Bakriri, Akaa Malawa David, Sinclear Oliki, Clement Ikolo Ogbenerukevwe and Reuben Baru.
Responding to a question on whether placing necessary bounties could be done to track down the fleeing suspected killers whose dastardly acts instantly triggered national and international outrage, Major General Edward Buba said that if it became necessary to place bounties on the heads of all those that had been declared wanted by the military, the authorities would not hesitate to do so including other actions being taken to get them for prosecution.
The declaration of the eight persons as wanted suspects came 24 hours after the murdered soldiers were buried at the military cemetery in Abuja on Wednesday,27 March 2023 where President Bola Tinubu who personally attended, insisted that those responsible for the senseless killing must be arrested and face the law.
Apart from President Tinubu who personally graced the solemn event, also in attendance to pay their last respects to the slain heroes were Federal Executive Council members, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abass and other leadership of the National Assembly, state governors, the top military brass, families and relations of the slain soldiers as well as their well-wishers.
Daily Spokesman recalls that on March 14, Lt Col AH Ali, the Commanding Officer of 181 Amphibious Battalion, two Majors, a Captain and 13 soldiers were killed in Okuama Community during a peacekeeping mission to mediate in the lingering dispute with Okoloba Community, Delta State.
Meanwhile, a stern-looking Major General Edward Buba at the briefing the press said that despite the unfortunate loss of 17 soldiers in Delta state, troops of the Nigerian military would sustain the war against crime and criminality across the country, disclosing that in the last one week 212 terrorists were neutralized while other 252 criminal elements were arrested 252 persons.
Troops also rescued 244 kidnapped hostages and arrested 29 perpetrators of oil theft thereby denying them of N1, 050,715,260.00 worth of stolen oil in the South-South region.
He further disclosed that troops recovered 223 assorted weapons and 2,756 assorted ammunitions, comprising 3 M56 rifles, 115 AK47 rifles, 3 PKT gun, 24 locally fabricated gun, 36 dane guns, 7 locally fabricated pistols, one fabricated revolver pistol, 3 locally made single barrel guns, 2 hand grenades and one locally made explosive.
Others were 1,716 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 494 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 60 rounds of 7.62 x 25mm ammo, 290 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm ammo, 81 rounds of 9mm ammo, 2 live cartridges, 16 magazines, 3 M56 rifles magazines, one HH radio, 5 vehicles, 14 motorcycles, 15 mobile phones and the sum of N857,960.00 amongst other items.
“Troops in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed 102 dugout pits, 41 boats, 36 storage tanks and 8 vehicles. Other items recovered incl 39 cooking ovens, 6 pumping machines and 61 illegal refining sites. Troops recovered 944,700 litres of stolen crude oil, 171,060 litres of illegally refined AGO and 1,500 litres of DPK,” he said.
In Major-General Edward Buba’s words, “the foregoing indicates that troops are weathering the storm through offensive posture and improved understanding of modus operandi of the adversary. Accordingly, we are doing our best to rescue other hostages in terrorist captivity.
“Troops would also continue to eliminate threats posed by these terrorists and their cohorts. However, citizens should remember that they are our first line of intelligence. Therefore, as citizens, we have a collective responsibility of doing right”.
He expressed the resolve of the armed forces in “sustaining the winning ways of our operational engagements as demonstrated with the recent rescue of 16 and 137 hostages in Sokoto and Kaduna States, respectively.
“The rescue of these hostages is indicative of a better understanding of the dynamics of what we are dealing with, and to address the issue in a much safer manner,” he noted.
He explained that the rescue operations were based on collaboration between the military working with local authorities and government agencies across the country, in a coordinated approach.
“The success demonstrates the unwavering commitment of the armed forces to secure and protect the citizens against harm and acts of terror,” he added.
Major-General Buba said the pressure of military operations created a significant level of distress both for the terrorists and the children.
“Given the situation, troops’ line of interest was the children. The level of distress created by the children was sufficient enough for troops to exploit in their rescue. Additionally, cursory operations in the general areas by troops culminated in the neutralization of several terrorist leaders and commanders in OP HADARIN DAJI theatre of operation,” he said.
“On the flip side, we must never allow the incident that occurred in Delta State that led to the killing of 17 soldiers that were buried on 27 March 2024 to ever happen again. The armed forces are a force for stability that employs both kinetic and non-kinetic measures to achieve the desired end,” General Buba said.
“Prior to the ugly incident, the military had constructed several civic projects in Delta State as a sign of good will. For instance, the construction of Multipurpose Hall and Borehole Projects in Patani LGA and Medical Outreach at Aladja Community in Udu LGA all in Delta State, among several others. Needless to mention, the elders and community leaders have an obligation to expose these wanted persons.
“Nevertheless, troops would continue with their efforts until the culprits are found, arrested, tried, and brought to justice by Nigerian law. The banner of eight wanted persons involved with the killing including a woman is hereby released.
“Accordingly, it is necessary to state that citizens are our first line of intelligence and must rise to the occasion in honour of their nation’’, he said.
