Warri channel now under 24-hour surveillance - Navy

Commodore Rotimi Oderemi, the Commander, Nigeria Navy Ship (NNS) Victory, has said that the entire Warri Channel, adjoining creeks, and islands are now under 24-hour naval surveillance.

Oderemi said this in Calabar when the leadership and members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Cross River Council, visited him.

The commander said that the navy had also ensured mobile patrols around the Eastern Naval Command to ensure the safety of artisans, fishermen, and other legitimate water users.

“I am proud to tell you that the entire Warri Channel, the adjoining creeks, and the islands now enjoy a 24-hour naval presence.

“This is to ensure that the waterways are safe for users. It is also to ensure that the waterways are uncomfortable for criminals and economic saboteurs,” he said.

Oderemi thanked NUJ for their readiness to partner with the Nigerian Navy to project its activities and successes to the public.

He said that, as stakeholders in national development, NNS Victory was ready to support the activities of NUJ beyond security lines.

On her part, Mrs. Archibong Bassey, Chairman of NUJ, Cross River Council, said the visit was to re-enact synergy between the navy and the media in the state.

Bassey commended the navy for its role in ensuring that the challenge of crude oil theft was reasonably tackled.

She said that naval personnel put their lives on the line to checkmate economic sabotage along the nation’s waterways.

“We have observed that sea piracy has reduced drastically; those who travel by boat from Calabar to Oron in Akwa Ibom can attest to this,” she said.

The NUJ chairman also thanked the navy for being proactive in the campaign against illegal oil bunkering in the South-South region.