{"id":5277,"date":"2026-01-11T19:10:22","date_gmt":"2026-01-11T19:10:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2026\/01\/11\/just-in-nigerian-army-debunks-report-made-by-sahara-reporters-on-chief-of-army-staffs-visit-to-port-harcourt-describes-report-as-fake-untrue-blackmail\/"},"modified":"2026-01-11T19:10:22","modified_gmt":"2026-01-11T19:10:22","slug":"just-in-nigerian-army-debunks-report-made-by-sahara-reporters-on-chief-of-army-staffs-visit-to-port-harcourt-describes-report-as-fake-untrue-blackmail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2026\/01\/11\/just-in-nigerian-army-debunks-report-made-by-sahara-reporters-on-chief-of-army-staffs-visit-to-port-harcourt-describes-report-as-fake-untrue-blackmail\/","title":{"rendered":"JUST IN: Nigerian Army Debunks Report Made By Sahara Reporters On Chief Of Army Staff\u2019s Visit To Port Harcourt, Describes Report As Fake, Untrue, Blackmail"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>By Freeborn Abraye<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The attention of Army Headquarters has been drawn to an outright misrepresentation of facts on the recent visit by the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, to 6 Division, Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt Barracks. The submission by Sahara Reporters with the headline \u201cNigerian Army Chief Raises Alarm over Rising Pipeline Vandalism in Niger Delta\u201d is misleading, malicious and should be disregarded. It is also important to unequivocally state that the COAS did not express concern nor raise any alarm in any quarter on alleged rising cases of pipeline vandalism as portrayed in the misleading account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For the record, the COAS, while addressing troops on Friday, 9 January 2025, at 6 Division, Port Harcourt, said: \u201cYour job here is very key to protecting critical national infrastructure, and once you do that job very well, it will impact positively on the economy of the country.\u201d The Army Chief stressed that, \u201cSo you need to take your job very seriously, be disciplined, committed and dedicated to the mandate of this Division. While you do that, be assured I will take care of your welfare issues, which are topmost priorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSome of the challenges raised by your commanders were addressed immediately; for instance, the issue of accommodation. We have approved the construction of additional accommodation, the renovation of certain quarters and the completion of some ongoing projects.\u201d He added, \u201cOnce this is done, it will go a long way in mitigating some of the accommodation challenges that are here.\u201d He maintained that, \u201cIn terms of quality education for your children, that is all being looked into, and in turn, we expect you to do your job conscientiously. So listen to your officers; they will guide you and lead you right.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He said \u201cNormally, I go round various Divisions to see officers and men, interact with them, and ensure their combat readiness. So I am here in the 6 Division area of responsibility for my maiden operational visit to see what the troops are doing, to look at their challenges and see how we can address them so that they can go about doing their jobs seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The COAS further assured the troops that some of the challenges raised during the visit would be promptly addressed.<br \/>\u201cI have looked at some of the challenges they have raised; some were addressed immediately, while others will be addressed immediately we get to Abuja.\u201d He further said, \u201cI want you to continue to do your jobs conscientiously. Your jobs around here involve the protection of critical national infrastructure, which impacts our economy, so once you do your job very well, everything will be fine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Furthermore, it is important to restate that media houses whose stock in trade is to arm-twist narratives to project their adversarial posture are hereby enjoined to check the veracity of their facts before placing them in the public domain. For clarity, the COAS did not raise alarm over rising cases of pipeline vandalism, as all parameters on ground, security-wise, indicated a commendable security effort at checking the menace of oil theft and pipeline vandalism across the region. These efforts have significantly led to sustained exploration activities in the oil and gas sector, in the interest of the nation\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Members of the public are called upon to disregard such subtle but futile attempts at downplaying security efforts that are yielding positive results across the region. Additionally, the good people of the region are urged to continue to provide credible intelligence on the activities of economic saboteurs in their domain to security agencies for prompt response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>APPOLONIA ANELE<br>Colonel<br>Acting Director, Army Public Relations<br>11 January 2025<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Freeborn Abraye The attention of Army Headquarters has been drawn to an outright misrepresentation&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5276,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"JUST IN: Nigerian Army Debunks Report Made By Sahara Reporters On Chief Of Army Staff\u2019s Visit To Port Harcourt, Describes Report As Fake, Untrue, Blackmail","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[13],"tags":[1781,1779,1780,1778],"class_list":["post-5277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-blackmail","tag-describes-report-as-fake","tag-just-in-nigerian-army-debunks-report-made-by-sahara-reporters-on-chief-of-army-staffs-visit-to-port-harcourt","tag-untrue"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/img_7002.jpg?fit=940%2C618&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1196,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2021\/12\/13\/breaking-chief-of-defence-staff-gen-irabor-sacks-50-army-generals-over-rising-rate-of-insecurity\/","url_meta":{"origin":5277,"position":0},"title":"BREAKING: Chief Of Defence Staff Gen Irabor Sacks 50 Army Generals Over Rising Rate Of Insecurity","author":"Coastal Times","date":"December 13, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Coastal News Chief of Defence Staff (CDS),\u00a0General Leo Irabor\u00a0has ordered 50 Generals in the Nigerian military to tender their resignation with immediate effect. They cut across the Air Force, Army and Navy; around 25 of the senior officers are in the Army. An impeccable source told\u00a0DAILY POST\u00a0that Irabor gave the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Insecurity&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Insecurity","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/insecurity\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/c4squrxk-1024x736-1-1.jpeg?fit=1024%2C736&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/c4squrxk-1024x736-1-1.jpeg?fit=1024%2C736&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/c4squrxk-1024x736-1-1.jpeg?fit=1024%2C736&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/c4squrxk-1024x736-1-1.jpeg?fit=1024%2C736&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":456,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2021\/09\/15\/breaking-aib-submits-report-on-crash-that-killed-ex-army-chief-attahiru\/","url_meta":{"origin":5277,"position":1},"title":"BREAKING: AIB Submits Report On Crash That Killed Ex-Army Chief, Attahiru","author":"Coastal Times","date":"September 15, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Coastal News The Accident Investigation Bureau, has submitted its interim report to the Nigerian Air Force on the NAF Beechcraft 350 crash that killed 11 military personnel including a serving Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, on May 31, 2021. The AIB, which submitted its report after three\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Insecurity&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Insecurity","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/insecurity\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/screenshot_20210915-204042_wordpress-1.jpg?fit=782%2C512&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/screenshot_20210915-204042_wordpress-1.jpg?fit=782%2C512&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/screenshot_20210915-204042_wordpress-1.jpg?fit=782%2C512&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/screenshot_20210915-204042_wordpress-1.jpg?fit=782%2C512&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3090,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2024\/09\/12\/army-lauds-tompolos-tantita-security-company-over-donation-of-accommodation-blocks-to-3-battalion\/","url_meta":{"origin":5277,"position":2},"title":"Army Lauds Tompolo\u2019s Tantita Security Company Over Donation Of Accommodation Blocks To 3 Battalion","author":"Freeborn Abraye","date":"September 12, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"By Freeborn Abraye The Nigerian Army has expressed gratitude for the newly constructed 3 Battalion Soldiers\u2019 Transit Accommodation built and furnished by Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSL) for military personnel at Effurun Barrack in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State. The building which was commissioned by the General\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/5ab5a712-acaa-4b61-a0ae-1f3f817382d5-1.jpg?fit=565%2C288&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/5ab5a712-acaa-4b61-a0ae-1f3f817382d5-1.jpg?fit=565%2C288&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/5ab5a712-acaa-4b61-a0ae-1f3f817382d5-1.jpg?fit=565%2C288&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3252,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2024\/11\/15\/pap-administrator-dr-dennis-otuaro-condoles-with-president-tinubu-ribadu-ministers-defence-chiefs-over-death-of-chief-of-army-staff-lt-gen-taoreed-lagbaja\/","url_meta":{"origin":5277,"position":3},"title":"PAP Administrator, Dr Dennis Otuaro Condoles With President Tinubu, Ribadu, Ministers, Defence Chiefs Over Death Of Chief Of Army Staff, Lt Gen Taoreed Lagbaja","author":"Freeborn Abraye","date":"November 15, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"By Freeborn Abraye The Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Dr Dennis Otuaro, has commiserated with President Bola Tinubu on the passing of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, who died in active service. Otuaro also condoled with the Office of the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/e1235f23-e19d-44d8-8bfd-8dc1492e7cd2-1.jpg?fit=964%2C1080&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/e1235f23-e19d-44d8-8bfd-8dc1492e7cd2-1.jpg?fit=964%2C1080&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/e1235f23-e19d-44d8-8bfd-8dc1492e7cd2-1.jpg?fit=964%2C1080&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/e1235f23-e19d-44d8-8bfd-8dc1492e7cd2-1.jpg?fit=964%2C1080&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5322,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2026\/01\/28\/tantita-hands-over-new-headquarters-sector-facilities-to-nigerian-army-in-effurun\/","url_meta":{"origin":5277,"position":4},"title":"Tantita Hands Over New Headquarters, Sector Facilities to Nigerian Army in Effurun","author":"Freeborn Abraye","date":"January 28, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022Pondi Says Collaboration Is the Bedrock of Tantita\u2019s Security Strategy By Freeborn Abraye Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL) has inaugurated newly constructed and remodelled office facilities at the 3 Battalion Headquarters and Sector I Headquarters of the Nigerian Army in Effurun, Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State, as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/img_7452.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/img_7452.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/img_7452.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/img_7452.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/img_7452.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":631,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2021\/10\/05\/nigeria-61-ozobo-describes-country-as-failed-nation-dreaded-than-lion-kingdom\/","url_meta":{"origin":5277,"position":5},"title":"NIGERIA @61: Ozobo Describes Country As Failed Nation, Dreaded Than Lion Kingdom","author":"Coastal Times","date":"October 5, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Coastal News Hon. Austin Ozobo Niger Delta rights activist, and National president of Ijaw People's Development Initiative, IPDI, Comrade (prince) Ozobo Austin has said that the federal and state governments, National Assembly, Judiciary, Business class ,Police, Army Navy and other security agencies have failed Nigerian citizens at the 61 independence\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Opinion&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Opinion","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/opinion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img-20191223-wa00402136869790-1.jpg?fit=924%2C612&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img-20191223-wa00402136869790-1.jpg?fit=924%2C612&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img-20191223-wa00402136869790-1.jpg?fit=924%2C612&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img-20191223-wa00402136869790-1.jpg?fit=924%2C612&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pfDfBE-1n7","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5277"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5277\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5276"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}