By: Felix Ikpotor
Chairman of Emohua local government area in Rivers State, Dr Chidi Lloyd has intercepted a newly constructed illegal artisanal petroleum refining site in Rumuji town in the area.
A statement from the media unit of the council said following a tip off on illegal oil bunkering activities in area and in compliance with the directive of the governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, the council chairman on Wednesday led a combined team of security personnel and members of the local government taskforce on illegal oil bunkering into a forest in Rumuji town, where construction work was being concluded for the take off of a new illegal artisanal petroleum refinery with over fifteen tanks and receivers already fabricated and installed in the site.
Lloyd, according to the statement, alleged the involvement of highly placed individuals and security personnel in the illegal oil bunkering activities.
He called for the intervention of the federal government to ensure that the menace is brought to an end.
The council chairman thanked Governor Wike for championing the fight against soot which is majorly caused by illegal oil bunkering activities in the state, stressing that the success of the fight against soot depends on the sincerity of the federal government controlled security agencies who are empowered to fight oil theft and other criminal activities in the country.
Lloyd called for the support and cooperation of community stakeholders, especially in the area of information gathering, to collectively end the soot in the council.
