The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), on Friday, unveiled a Naval Strategic Location in Ayakoro community in Bayelsa to check activities of pirates, kidnapping and oil theft.

The managing director of NDDC, Samuel Ogbuku, said at the ceremony that the location would help to sustain the achievements of the Navy in curbing oil theft and other vices in the Niger Delta.

He said that the project situated in Ogbia Local Government was a major intersection for many creeks in the region.

Mr Ogbuku said the location had a fully furnished naval administrative block, accommodation block, two units of gunboats, operational vehicles, and an operational floating jetty, among others.

According to him, the aim is to reaffirm the commission’s unwavering commitment to advancing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Mr Ogbuku emphasised that one of the primary responsibilities of any government was to ensure security and development, describing the two as inseparable pillars of national progress.

He observed that Mr Tinubu’s administration had provided crucial support and played a complementary role in enabling the NDDC to carry out projects such as the newly unveiled Naval Location in Ayakoro.

He said, “This project represents part of the administration’s commitment to enhancing security in the Niger Delta.

“The president’s strategic investment in security has yielded tangible results; crude oil production has risen from one million to 2.2 million barrels per day.

“This achievement is a testament to improved security, stakeholder engagement, and collective efforts.

“These are parts of the legacies we want to leave behind. We have so many projects that would soon be commissioned in commemoration of our second year anniversary as the Seventh Governing Board of the NDDC.

“The community where the project is located is aimed at protecting and providing security for the waterways in the Niger Delta because every waterway is a gateway for criminals to perpetrate crime.

”We will not be able to curb criminality until we’re able to secure all our waterways.

“If this place had not been blocked in the past, kidnappers and those involved in illegal oil activities and artisanal refining would have used it to move their products, evacuating them through Onuembu to other buyers.

“So this facility helps to prevent criminal activities in the area. It also stops those intending to commit crimes in Yenagoa, such as kidnapping, by blocking their escape route.

“With this facility in place, they have no choice but to be deterred, and it also protects the entire stretch of this river.”

He commended the Ayakoro community for generously donating several hectares of land to the Nigerian Navy for the establishment of a Navy School, and thanked the Bayelsa State government for its continued support.

Delivering a goodwill message on behalf of the community and the council of chiefs, Clever Apkoti described the project as a testament to Ogbuku’s visionary leadership.

“We are profoundly grateful to God Almighty and to Ogbuku for this developmental milestone in our community.”

(NAN)