Posted by By Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt on
Despite the ceasefire announced by the rebel group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, the Joint Task Force, JTF, has accused the rebel group of embarking on forceful massive recruitment of idle hands into its various camps after suffering depletion within the one week of battle.
Despite the ceasefire announced by the rebel group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, the Joint Task Force, JTF, has accused the rebel group of embarking on forceful massive recruitment of idle hands into its various camps after suffering depletion within the one week of battle.
However, the rebel group has expressed an urgent need for the International Red Cross to come to the creeks to clear the waters of 'floating bodies of dead soldiers to prevent epidemic' in the creeks.
Besides the floating bodies, there is also concern about the polluted environment due to the burst pipelines and oil installations due to sabotage by the rebel group.
The JTF has, therefore, placed itself on red alert, just as it said it arrested 69 suspected recruits at the various waterfronts in Port Harcourt, over the weekend. This is against the backdrop of the fact that although it has announced a ceasefire, that it cannot vouch for other angry groups which pledged loyalty to it while the 'Hurricane Barbarosa' lasted.
JTF spokesman, Lt.Col. Sagir Musa, said that even when MEND announced violent attacks on oil installations, it will not abandon its constitutional obligation of protecting lives and property in the area of jurisdiction.
Meanwhile, some concerned stakeholders in the region, like Mr. Marvin Yobana, the National Vice-Chairman of the National Youth Council of Nigeria, said the cessation of hostilities is a welcome development, especially as the world commemorates a day of peace in the war-torn zones of the globe.
MEND had announced a ceasefire at the weekend through an e-mail to P.M.News in Port Harcourt that: According to the group, 'after one week of intense lopsided fighting and an unprecedented sabotage on the oil industry prompted by an unprovoked attack on one of our positions including indiscriminate attacks on civilian communities, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) will downgrade the oil war code named Hurricane Barbarossa to a state of alert code named Tropical Storm Vigilant.'
The group said it heeded the appeals by the foremost Ijaw leaders like Chief Edwin Clark, Chief Government Ekpemupolo and Senator David Brigidi.