Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State has expressed concern over a new trend in oil bunkering, saying children and women were being used as human shields at illegal refining camps.
Diri stated this during a meeting with first class traditional rulers in the state and local government chairmen at Government House, Yenagoa.
The governor, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Alabrah, on Tuesday, said the situation was discovered by security operatives on reconnaissance operations.
He called on the royal fathers to educate their subjects on the dangers of the illegal business to human health and the environment.
His words: “The report I received recently is that at illegal bunkering sites, they now have children and women, which is a dimension I have never heard before.
“Sometimes, when the military are authorized to destroy those camps and they get there on reconnaissance, they discover that children and women are used to shield those places.
“So, we all have to work together in our domains to educate our people. There was a situation where the military moved in and discovered that children and women were there and had to withdraw.”
Diri urged the monarchs and council chairmen to take steps to curb the menace which he said occurred in Southern Ijaw, Ekeremor, Brass and Nembe local government areas.
He also charged the monarchs to report to him oil bunkering sites in their domains, stressing that the trend could be addressed through collaborative efforts.
VANGUARD
