Military uncovers plans to attack some critical infrastructure in Nigeria – Spokesperson

BY ANDREW OROLUA

The Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba, said on Thursday, that the military is engaged in complex operations in five active theatres across the country.

He also said they are aware of some of the plans to target some critical infrastructure in the country and had accordingly emplaced measures to forestall such plans.

Security agencies responsible for securing critical infrastructure and facilities have also been placed on alert, even as some of such plans have been frustrated, he added.

Major General Buba disclosed this during the bi-weekly press briefing on the activities of the military against the insurgents.

He said “these operations are complex as troops are engaged in fighting in difficult terrains as well as fighting adversaries that adopt various forms, across the country.”

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Recall that the military was asked to assist Nigeria Police to quell the Boko Haram insurgency in 2009 in Borno State.

The Director said the military is keeping up the pressure through ongoing operations in the North East, North West, North Central, South-South and South East, “with the North East and North West having the highest levels of intensity,”

“Clearly, we have boots on the ground and are fighting in several dimensions to crush the enemy.

“Indeed, troops are fighting on ground, air, at sea as well as in the cyber dimension in several parts of the country. The common denominator in all our operations is the terrorist”, he assured.

He said these terrorists are the enemy that must be fought and defeated. They are responsible for keeping the nation in an almost constant state of counter terrorism and counter insurgency,” he added.

The Director said that during the week under review, troops neutralised 187 terrorists and arrested 183 persons. Troops also arrested 26 perpetrators of oil theft and rescued 109 kidnapped hostages.

In the South-South where economic saboteurs are constantly targeting crude oil the main stream of the economy, “troops denied the oil theft of the estimated sum of One Billion One Hundred and Twenty Seven Million Two Hundred and Twenty Nine Thousand Eight Hundred and Ninety Naira (N1,127,229,890.00) only.

“Furthermore, troops recovered 128 assorted weapons and 3,300 assorted ammunition. The breakdown as follows: one PKT gun, 80 AK47 rifles, 15 locally fabricated gun, 15 dane guns, 2 FN rifles, 5 pump action guns, 2 single barrel guns, 4 locally fabricated pistols, one fabricated barretta pistol, one locally made double barrel gun, 2 hand grenades, 2 primed IEDs and materials.

“Others are: 1,941 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 729 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 377 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm, 191 rounds of 5.55mm ammo, 199 rounds of 7.62 x 39mm ammo, 16 rounds of 9mm ammo, 26 live cartridges, 26 empty case of cartridges, 26 AK47 magazines, 6 baofeng radios, 10 vehicles, 4 motorcycles, 4 walkie-talkie, mobile phones and the sum of N102,010.00 only amongst other items.

“Troops in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed 18 dugout pits, 30 boats and 49 storage tanks. Other items recovered include 66 cooking ovens, 4 drums, 5 speedboats, 15 vehicles, 2 tricycles, one generator, 11 mobile phones and 57 illegal refining sites. Troops recovered 1, l25, 440 litres of stolen crude oil, 213,539 litres of illegally refined AGO and 1,230 litres of PMS.

“Troops are confronted by vicious enemies that are constantly trying to kill citizens or have killed citizens. Indeed, these terror groups are responsible for perpetrating insecurity across the country and will not stop doing what they are doing, until they are stopped.

“In this fight, citizens must understand that we must never compromise on security, otherwise everyone’s security will be compromised. This is a situation that cannot be over emphasised for us to live in safety and security”, he said.

He said the military is doing what is needed at this time. We force the terrorist to pay a price for every act of aggression against citizens of this country. We recognise and have included this as part of our strategy to win the war.

“Overall, we have no choice but to fight for the safety and security of our citizens. We also fight to safeguard our nation and preserve our way of life as a people. For us a force, Defence is the essence of what we do as an armed forces. Accordingly, we would defeat the terrorists on the battlefield and help our nation flourish again,” he added.