The Minister of Defence, Maj.-Gen. Bashir Magashi (rtd), has expressed the military determination in partnering the Ministry of Environment to ensure protection of the national environmental eco- system in the Niger Delta region.
Magashi, in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr Mohammad Abdulkadri, gave the assurance when he hosted the Minister of State for Environment, Mrs Sharon Ikeazor on Friday in Abuja.
He said that the Next Level agenda mantra of President Muhammadu Buhari to secure the nation’s territorial integrity has started yielding results in the Niger Delta.
According to him, the various military campaigns has been inducted in the region to curb oil thefts such as illegal refineries, pipeline vandalism, degradation and desecration of the land by hoodlums.
He said that the visit of the environment minister would help in upscaling inter-ministerial synergy for environmental sustainability, to clean up the region of activities of economic saboteurs.
The minister gave assurance of the willingness of the defence ministry to collaborate and cooperate with environment counterpart to ensure sanity and safety in the dark spots of oil spillage in the region.
Earlier, Ikeazor said the unregulated and unauthorised refineries in the Niger Delta were the most challenging environmental issues.
She, however, sought the support of the defence minister to stop the illegal refiners from sabotaging the nation’s economic asset.
Also, the Director General, National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) Mr Idris Musa, made presentation on the quantum of damage to oil infrastructure, loss to economic recovery and stability efforts of the present administration.
