Ministries Of Defence, Environment To Synergise On Protection Of N’Delta Environment

The Minister of Defence, Maj.-Gen. Bashir Magashi (rtd), has expressed the determination of the military to partner the Federal Ministry of Environment to ensure protection of the national environmental eco-system in the Niger-Delta zone.

Magashi, in a statement issued 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 of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to secure the nation’s territorial integrity had started yielding results in the Niger Delta.

According to him, various military campaigns have been carried out in the zone to curb oil thefts through illegal refineries, pipeline vandalism as well as the degradation and desecration of the land by hoodlums.

He said that the visit of the environment minister would help in up-scaling inter-ministerial synergy for environmental sustainability to clean up the region of activities of economic saboteurs.

The minister expressed the willingness of the defence ministry to collaborate and cooperate with its environment counterpart to ensure sanity and safety in the dark spots of oil spillage in the region.

Speaking earlier, Ikeazor said that the unregulated and unauthorised refineries in the Niger Delta were the most challenging environmental issue in the zone.

She, however, sought the support of the defence minister to stop the illegal refiners from sabotaging the nation’s economic assets.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mr Idris Musa, the Director-General, National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), made presentation on the quantum of damage to oil infrastructure, economic losses and government’s stability efforts.