Niger Delta

Four Pirates, Two Traders Die In Gun Duel

Published

9 years ago

May 13, 2016

Operatives of the Joint
Task Force (JTF) of Operation Pulo Shield (OPS) have killed six unknown gunmen in the creeks of Bayelsa and Rivers States.
Four pirates were killed after they had engaged the soldiers in a shootout at Peregbene, on the Ogbia-Nembe waterways in Bayelsa State.
A soldier (a private) was, however, injured in the gun duel, which lasted about an hour.
According to a source, the gunmen were said to have attacked the gunboat conveying soldiers to an undisclosed location for an official assignment.
The gunboat came under attack but the soldiers had an upper hand in an ensuing gun duel.
“The soldiers repelled the attack. They replied fire for fire, killing four of them, and injuring some. But one of the soldiers, a private, was also injured,” a military source said.
Confirming the incident, Coordinator of the Joint Media Campaign Centre (JMCC), Col. Isa Ado, said the troops were on patrol of the waterways when they saw the hoodlums between Peregbene and Obama.
Ado said the suspected pirates were driving a speedboat with 200-horsepower engine, which had been banned on the waterways, when they saw the Army gunboat.1
“On sighting the gunboat, the gunmen tried to escape. Our troops fired at them while they were trying to run away. As they were escaping, they were firing back at our troops. About four of them were hit by bullets. They were either dead or sustained serious injuries.
“They navigated into a narrow creek, put off the engine of their boat, and ran into the creeks. They escaped with their dead. One of our soldiers was shot in the leg, and he was immediately evacuated to a hospital for treatment,” Ado said.
He said the troops were still combing the creeks to locate the whereabouts of the gunmen.
Ado said the commander of the OPS ensured constant patrol of the waterways to fish out economic saboteurs and other maritime criminals, in accordance with the directive of the Defence Headquarters.
Also, it was gathered that pirates attacked a commercial boat conveying traders to Kaa in Khana Local Government Area, Rivers State.
The gunmen reportedly shot and killed two of the traders, injured a kid and the captain of the boat.
The travellers were said to have left Bonny Island, in Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State, for Kaa, when their boat came under attack.
A source, who lives on Bonny Island, said the gunmen ambushed and tried in vain to stop the vessel.
“The boat had 200-horsepower engine. So, the captain, on sighting the gunmen, sped off. The gunmen chased the boat but could not catch up with it.
“They opened fire on the boat, killed two persons, and injured the captain and the kid. The injured are in a critical condition. The captain managed to bring the boat to Kaa,” the source said.

Niger Delta

Diri Appoints New HoS For Bayelsa

Published

3 days ago

September 8, 2025

The Tide

Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has approved the appointment of Dr. Wisdom Ebiye Sawyer, as Head of the Civil Service of the state.

Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, who disclosed this in a statement, said Sawyer, who until his appointment, was the Permanent Secretary in the State Ministry of Health, was necessitated by the retirement of the immediate past Head of Service, Barr. (Mrs.) Biobelemoye Charles-Onyema, on August 31, 2025.

The Governor’s spokesman said the new HoS joined the Bayelsa civil service on June 8, 1998 as a Medical Officer.

Born on May 14, 1970 in Odi Community, Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of the state, the new Head of Service began his education at Twon School, and later attended Okrika Grammar School, where he sat for the West African School Certificate examinations in 1986.

In 1988, Sawyer gained admission at the University of Port Harcourt, Choba, Rivers State, where he studied and obtained the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree in 1996.

He also attended the University of Lagos for a Master’s degree in Public Health in 2000, as well as the National Post-Graduate Medical College, Lagos in 2005 and later obtained a Part 2 Fellowship in Public Health at the same institution in 2010.

Dr. Sawyer has already defended his dissertation at the faculty level for a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D) in Clinical Sciences and Public Health at the state-owned Niger Delta University Faculty of Clinical Sciences.

The newly appointed HoS is also a member of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS).

By; Ariwera Ibibo-Howells, Yenagoa

Niger Delta

Oborevwori Felicitates Muslims On Eid-ul-Mawlid

Published

3 days ago

September 8, 2025

The Tide

Delta State Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, has congratulated Muslims in the state and across Nigeria on the occasion of this year’s Eid-ul-Mawlid celebration, which marks the birth of the Holy Prophet Muhammad.

Governor Oborevwori in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Sir Festus Ahon, called on Muslims to seize the opportunity of the celebration to reflect deeply on the exemplary life and teachings of the Prophet, which emphasize peace, love, tolerance, humility, and selfless service to humanity.

He noted that at a time when the nation is striving for greater unity and social cohesion, it has become imperative for Nigerians, regardless of faith, to imbibe these values for the progress and stability of the country.

Oborevwori commended the Muslim community in Delta for their steadfast contributions to the growth, peace, and unity of the state.

He assured that his administration would continue to uphold policies that promote religious harmony, inclusiveness, and mutual respect among all faiths.

“As we celebrate Eid-ul-Mawlid, let us be reminded that our strength as a people lies in our diversity and our shared commitment to building a peaceful and prosperous Delta and Nigeria”, the Governor stated.

He wished the Muslim faithful a joyful and hitch-free celebration.

By: Albert Ograka, Asaba

Niger Delta

Ex-Agitator Faults IYC Over Abuja Protest … Passes Confidence Vote On Tinubu, NNPC’s Ojulari

Published

3 days ago

September 8, 2025

The Tide

Niger Delta ex-agitator, Mr. Endurance Amagbein, popularly referred to as “General Amagbein”, has tasked the leadership of the umbrella Ijaw Youth body, the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), on politicization of the travails of the Niger Delta region over issues of pipeline surveillance contract renewal.

He expressed his worries over the recent actions of the IYC leadership who took to the streets of Abuja, protesting, while also demanding the sack of the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC Ltd), Mr. Bayo Ojulari.

The Ex-Agitator in statement described the appointment of the NNPC Ltd. boss as a ”carefully chosen” one by President Bola Tinubu, saying the President’s reason for Ojulari’s appointment was to take the nation’s oil and gas industry to the next level.

The statement read in part: “The IYC claimed that the protest was due to non-performance, financial mismanagement, systemic neglect and administrative failure.

“They also alleged that part of the reasons for their ill-advised protest was due to the exclusion of Niger Deltans from key oil and gas decision-making processes despite years of promises from successive administrations, and failure to deliver visible benefits to the Niger Delta despite the region being the mainstay of Nigeria’s oil wealth. But all these are lies”.

General Amagbein, who described himself as a firm supporter of the Tinubu-led government, alleged that the IYC was derailing from its core mandate and delving into partisan politics under the guise oil surveillance contract protest, noting that the group’s call for Bayo’s sack was as a result of his refusal to compromise policy standards of NNPC Ltd. in its operations.

“Though I align myself with the IYC’s call for reforms in the NNPC, especially in the area of decentralization of surveillance contracts amongst stakeholders in the various Niger Delta states and indigenous territories, I also want to condemn in total the call for the outright sack of Mr. Ojulari. The call for his sack is premature and politically motivated.

“The administration of President Tinubu has been fair to the people of the Niger Delta, and has appointed key sons of the region into juicy national offices.

“Even if anyone will pretend to be ignorant of the love of the President towards the Ijaw people, they cannot erase the fact that the sons of Niger Delta occupy top key sectors in the institutions established for the development and peace of the Niger Delta region.

“The likes of Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil), Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, MD/CEO of NDDC, and Chief Dennis Otuaru, the Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), are all Ijaw people, but sadly, nobody remembers this to thank Mr. President.

“It is so said that oil politics in the Niger Delta has infiltrated into the affairs of the IYC and its leaders have allowed surveillance contractors to direct policy statements of the youth body.

“The IYC triumphs in its core values on the straddle of the Niger Delta development agenda, as the founding fathers laid out their ideas on non-partisan services to the region through people-oriented programmes.

“In the past, the tradition of the IYC is to precede every of its actions that are considered sensitive with significant national importance with wide consultation of major stakeholders in the region, but this cherished tradition was ignored in their call for the sack of Mr. Bayo Ojulari, the Group Chief Executive Offcer of NNPC Ltd.

“It is very obvious that the IYC has derailed into partisan politics, thereby aligning their activities with surveillance contractors who have lost their goodwill over their surveillance activities in the last few years. It is never too late to go back to their roots anchored on the collective interest of the people.

“The founding fathers of the IYC knew the priceless contributions of stakeholders to the struggle, and that was why they always consulted with them before making any moves, but today, the efforts of the stakeholders who are the foundations of the Ijaw struggle are being overlooked, and that is why they have gone astray.

“When Chris Ekiyor was the President of the IYC, he succeeded because he never neglected the stakeholders, and he was always consulting them before doing anything, and his administration recorded a huge success.

“It is the sacrifices of the stakeholders that have brought about peace in the Niger Delta, and that is why the IYC now has a voice, and these sacrifices should not be overlooked.

“Anything that has to do with the Niger Delta requires serious and careful thoughts in other to not spark out flames, because as stakeholders, we know the sacrifices we are paying to maintain the peace and security of the region.

“Like the last presidential elections, it was the efforts of myself and Alhaji Asari Dokubo that brought about peaceful elections in the Niger Delta, and this we did by galvanizing our supporters and engaging with other stakeholders of the region to ensure a smooth process.

“And that is what I want the IYC to do so as to know the mind of stakeholders before doing anything. By doing this they can have the full support of the people”, he stated.

He continued that “President Tinubu made wide consultations and made an informed decision in the appointment of Mr. Bayo Ojulari, and rather than causing distractions, I, General Endurance Amagbein, encourage stakeholders to support President Tinubu’s development plans already laid out in progress for the Niger Delta region.

“However, I want to advice the IYC to shun partisan politics, especially oil politics in the Niger Delta, and they should not be seen to be carrying out the agenda of certain surveillance contractors in the region.”

By; Ariwera Ibibo-Howells, Yenagoa