Investigative journalist Fisayo Soyombo has stated that he did not involve the Nigerian military in his recent investigation into crude oil bunkering in the Niger Delta, citing the alleged complicity of some security personnel with the bunkerers.
Soyombo was detained by the Nigerian Army for three days, with the military claiming he was arrested during a raid on an illegal bunkering site in the region.
He was eventually released after social media erupted with news of his detention in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
In an interview on Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a socio-political programme on Channels Television, Soyombo explained that he chose not to collaborate with the military due to suspicions that some of its members were involved in the illicit bunkering activities.
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“The most important point to make is that illegal oil bunkerers bribe security operatives across the different security agencies, bribe them to make the bunkering happen.
“That is the real story – the fact that those who should be ending bunkering are partners, collaborators, allies of those involved in illegal oil bunkering and that is why I could not carry the military along,” Soyombo said.
To strengthen his argument, the journalist asserted that some military personnel had exposed his cover to the illegal bunkerers.
“These people were telling me everything about me, they were telling me who I was, and I was in detention, I didn’t speak to anyone else. As a matter of fact, they did not give me a phone to call anyone until Friday evening just before my release.
“How did the illegal bunkerers then know everything about me? Which then vindicates my decision not to involve the army from scratch,” he said.
Although he indicted some military personnel involved in bunkering operations, Soyombo acknowledged that there are members of the military who are genuinely committed to ending illegal oil bunkering.
Soyombo is well-known for his bold investigative work, which includes undercover investigations at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre and within Nigeria Customs, among others.
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