Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has raised alarm over a disturbing trend in oil bunkering operations, where women and children are reportedly being used as human shields at illegal refining camps in the state.
The PUNCH states that Diri disclosed this on Tuesday during a meeting with first-class traditional rulers and local government chairmen at the Government House, Yenagoa.
He described the situation as worrisome and called for urgent collective action to address the issue.
“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,” Diri said.
He added, “Sometimes, when the military are authorised 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.”
The governor noted that the trend is gaining ground in riverine communities such as Brass, Ekeremor, Nembe, and Southern Ijaw local government areas. He urged traditional rulers to take proactive steps by sensitising their subjects to the health and environmental dangers associated with illegal oil refining.
