The Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok Ete-Ibas, has described militants attacking oil and other critical infrastructures of government as enemies of state who must be dealt with accordingly.
He spoke at the Gulf of Guinea (GoG) during an international maritime sea exercise code named OPIA TOHA (togetherness) organised as part of activities to celebrate the Nigerian Navy’s (NN) 60th anniversary.
It was gathered that the Navy yesterday deployed four gun boats with special forces in the Niger Delta creeks to flush out Niger Delta Avengers and other threats to economic stability.
The Nation reliably gathered that NNS OKPABANA, a Frigate Class warship was among the vessels tasked to police the troubled region, while small gunboats as well as Special Boat Services (SBS) personnel have been tasked to block all choke points and smoke out the militants.
Ibas noted the need for more assets for the force to enable it effectively tackle the challenges of the moment.
Other countries’ navies that participated in the one day sea exercise were France, Cameroon, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Namibia, Cote D’ Ivoire and the United Kingdom.
While the NN deployed five vessels and two helicopters, France, Ghana and Cameroon each deployed a boat for the exercise.
Fielding questions from reporters, Ibas said the resources the NN deployed in the conduct of the sea exercise was justified by the performance of personnel.
He said: “The Armed Forces of any nation are trained to fight enemies of the nation. For now, militants are enemies of Nigeria and we will completely eliminate them.
“We are doing our very best but still require much more from government to enable us do better. We need more assets. We have a vast maritime space to cover.
“We have the back waters as well where new emerging threats are coming from. Indeed, we need vessels to be able to dominate.”
Asked what was delaying NNS UNITY the second vessel Nigerian ordered from China, the CNS said the Frigate Class ship would soon be delivered.
“NNS UNITY will be with us in a short while. The Second Seaward Defence Boat (SDB) is about 98 percent complete. It has already been launched. Once they start the sea and acceptance trials, she should be able to join the service.
“For NNS ARADU, survey is being conducted. To put ARADU back means deploying resources into the system. But once we get the recommendation of the survey, we will be able to take appropriate actions,” said Ibas.
Commending the NN for deploying men and material for the regional exercise, Namibia’s naval chief, Rear Admiral Peter Vilho said it was a demonstration of the NN’s might and capabilities.
Compared to many other third world countries, he said the NN has made major strides. “We used to do a few exercises in our region but we have never had one like this with many vessels and nations participating. The Nigerian Navy has been able to muster so many vessels at sea in this exercise. I am here personally because we were supposed to also bring a vessel for this exercise but it developed technical problem.
“So, I said we are still going to participate and continue since we already registered our interest for it.
“We are a bit farther from the GoG region but we believe that things can be tackled before they get worst. That’s why we find out about challenges from other parts of the world in order to prevent them.”
Giving an assessment of the exercise, the Commander of the Task group and Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command (WNC) Rear Admiral Fergusson Bobai said its objectives were met, adding that the joint forces proved that language was not a barrier to effective maritime security.
“Normally, platforms should be acquired based on threat scenario and the NN’s contemporary threats are in our back waters i.e. militancy, crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism. So, we must look for proper mix of vessels to fight them. “OPVs (Offshore Patrol Vessels) are one of the good vessels we can use to patrol our offshore installations.
“Helicopter is a force multiplier, she can be sent out to survey and feed the ship back on its findings so that the right platform can be vectored to go and confront the particular challenge. We are celebrating 60 years of existence, growing from strength to strength,” he said.
At the sea exercise were the Commandant, NDC, Rear Admiral Sanmi Alade; Chief of Naval Transformation, Rear Admiral Henry Babalola; Chief of Training and Operations, Rear Admiral Adeniyi Osinowo and Sierra Leonean Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, Gen. Alfred Nelson-Williams (rtd), among others.
