Recent cash crunch in Nigeria may well be a blessing in disguise as the Director, Defence Media Operations, Major General Musa Danmadami affirmed there have been drastic decline in cases of kidnap for ransom accross the country in recent times.
While clarifying issues at the bi-weekly briefing on the Operations of the Military Troops in the Six Geopolitical Zones of the country, the Director Defence Media Operations said, the reduction is owing to renewed onslaught against the terrorists by the Nation’s troops and the current cash crunch in the country as criminals for fear of being tracked down by security forces at the point of making cash withdrawals, prefer being paid in cash rather than bank transfers
Major General Danmadami, had earlier said that troops in conjunction with other security forces operating in the Niger Delta Region of the country destroyed 74 illegal refining sites and arrested 71 oil thieves in the last two weeks.
He explained that the gallant troops also saved the nation the loss of N173.985,60m worth of crude oil in the region within the period under review.
ACCORDING TO HIM, TROOPS ALSO RECOVERED 209,000 LITRES OF CRUDE OIL, 145,000 LITRES OF AUTOMOTIVE GAS OIL, 4,500 LITRES OF PREMIUM MOTOR SPIRIT, 27 VARIETIES OF WEAPONS, 468 ASSORTED AMMUNITION, 2-SPEED BOATS, 2 OUTBOARD ENGINE, 8 VEHICLES AND 4 MOTORCYCLES, DISCOVERED AND DESTROYED 341 STORAGE TANKS, 31 WOODEN BOATS, 260 OVENS AND 15 DUGOUT PITS AMONG OTHERS.
General Danmadanmim noted that during operations 1,332 terrorist and their family members comprising 222 males, 411, females and 699 children surrendered to troops at different locations within the theatre of Operations adding that troops rescued 56, kidnapped persons from their abductors and the destroyed several terrorist enclaves across the country