Nigeria Partners with Three African Countries in Crimes in the Gulf of GuineaNews – The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News

[FILES] Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awaal Gambo

Nigeria is about to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Cameroon, Benin and Equatorial Guinea to review the growing insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea.

Chief of Naval Staff Vice Admiral Awaal Gambo explained this while teaching journalists in Calabar, Cross River state, over the weekend after addressing officers and assessments during his first visit to Eastern Naval Command.

“We have just started the Obangame exercise with friends of the Gulf of Guinea, Gulf of Guinea Commission countries and other international partners such as the US, France and the UK. There has been so much hype on social media about the situation in the Gulf of Guinea.

“The situation in the Gulf of Guinea is not as bad as shown, but we are also trying to create a suitable platform for our efforts to secure the Gulf of Guinea. Also, most of the crimes in the region are not necessarily located in Nigerian waters, ”he said.

Gambo revealed that most piracy and crimes were committed outside of the 200 Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) that make up Nigeria but are also available to international ships.

He noted that other ships, including war and merchant ships, were also crossing the route, adding, “We must not obstruct their movements. So if crime does occur in the area, we may be available at this time, and possibly our time, patrol efforts may be in a different direction.

“To this end, and under my administration, I plan to sign an MoU with Gulf Guinea Commission countries so that we can jointly patrol the area as most of the effort is carried out by Nigeria.”

He stated that Nigeria had spent a lot of money to complement efforts to secure the region and that the Nigerian Navy had done its best to contain uncertainty in the maritime area.

Gambo said the Navy had tackled piracy, crude oil theft and other crimes in the country’s maritime area, and stressed that it was making additional efforts to acquire more platforms.

He went on to say, “President Muhammadu Buhari has directed us to restore peace and security to Nigerians so that they can move around without fear and do their legitimate business.

“To accomplish this, all officers and assessments should display teamwork, professionalism and integrity, as well as the core values ​​of the Nigerian Navy. Discipline remains the basis of military service. I will continue to monitor your activities and will not hesitate to relieve those who are missing their appointments, ”he added.