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The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has intercepted an alleged international wildlife trafficking syndicate at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, rescuing two live lion cubs allegedly destined for Congo-Brazzaville and arresting three suspects linked to the operation.

The intelligence-led operation, conducted on August 4, 2026, has exposed what conservation and security authorities described as another disturbing chapter in the illicit trade in endangered wildlife, with Nigeria’s transport corridors allegedly being exploited as a passageway for an international trafficking network.

The operation was spearheaded by the Special Wildlife Office (SWO) of the Customs Intelligence Unit (CIU), working with the FCT CIU, Customs Police Unit (CPU), FCT Command and conservation partner, Focused Conservation.

According to an official report released on August 10 by Assistant Comptroller of Customs Anuhu Mani, Officer-in-Charge of the Special Wildlife Office, the suspects allegedly moved the lion cubs from Kano through Abuja, with Congo-Brazzaville reportedly identified as their final destination.

Acting on actionable intelligence, Customs operatives mounted surveillance around the airport’s Cargo Terminal and tracked a black SUV allegedly connected to the illicit movement.

The operation reportedly took a dramatic turn when a CIU operative conducting a physical inspection of the vehicle heard animal cries emanating from the rear compartment.

When officers opened the luggage area, they reportedly discovered two live lion cubs concealed inside crates.

The alleged wildlife cargo, however, could not produce a customs declaration, passport or diplomatic immunity. Instead, it reportedly produced the cries of two endangered animals.

Three suspects – the alleged owner of the cubs, the driver of the vehicle and a Customs clearing agent – were arrested and are currently being interrogated as investigators work to determine the wider structure, financiers, facilitators and intended beneficiaries of the trafficking operation.

Mani said the seizure demonstrated the Service’s determination to prevent Nigeria from becoming a convenient corridor for organised wildlife crime.

“This operation sends an unmistakable message that Nigeria will not serve as a transit hub or safe haven for wildlife trafficking syndicates,” he said.

He added that with Nigeria’s wild lion population under increasing conservation pressure, the rescue represented more than an enforcement operation.

“Saving these cubs is not just an enforcement success, it is a critical conservation victory,” Mani said, stressing that the specialised unit would continue to deploy intelligence, profile trafficking routes and pursue those profiting from the illegal wildlife trade.

The alleged trafficking operation constitutes a serious environmental crime under applicable national and international wildlife protection regimes, including the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and Nigeria’s Endangered Species Act.

Following their rescue, the cubs were handed over to Greenfingers Wildlife Conservation Initiative for specialised veterinary attention, rehabilitation and further conservation management.

The interception also underscores the increasingly complex role of Customs in combating organised environmental crime, as traffickers exploit legitimate trade and transportation channels to move endangered species across borders.

Under Comptroller-General of Customs Adewale Adeniyi, the NCS has increasingly positioned its intelligence and enforcement architecture beyond conventional revenue collection, extending its reach into the fight against transnational criminal networks involved in wildlife trafficking.

For the traffickers, the Abuja operation was supposed to be another discreet journey through Nigeria’s commercial arteries. Instead, the cubs became the loudest witnesses in the vehicle – and their cries reportedly led Customs officers straight to an alleged international wildlife trafficking operation.

The message from the interception is therefore both criminal and conservationist: Nigeria’s borders may facilitate legitimate commerce, but endangered species are not contraband merchandise for syndicates to package, crate and export at will.

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Rep OK Chinda the gubernatorial flag bearer of APC in Rivers State is best known for his humility both at home and in the diaspora.

In this short video clip, he still displays that embodiment of humility.

Watch:

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By Gloria Ikibah

The House of Representatives Committee on South-South Development Commission has demanded urgent and concrete measures to end the prolonged gas seepage in Bille Community, Rivers State, and the oil spill affecting Odidi Federated Community in Delta State.

Chairman of the committee, Rep. Julius Gbabojor Pondi, gave the directive on Thursday during a stakeholders’ engagement on the Bille gas seepage and a legislative hearing on the Odidi oil spill in Abuja.

Pondi said the two incidents had exposed residents of the oil-producing region to serious environmental and economic challenges, while responses from relevant authorities had failed to provide satisfactory and lasting solutions.

He said the committee became particularly concerned about the Bille incident following its engagement with the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) on July 30, 2026.

According to him, the gas seepage had persisted for about nine months, with no clear end in sight.

He noted that Bille, a predominantly fishing community, had suffered losses to livelihoods, food security, household incomes, education and the general wellbeing of residents.

Pondi said: “The implications are serious. Beyond the potential risks to health, safety and the environment, the incident has imposed severe economic hardship on the people of Bille.

“It is unacceptable for an incident of this magnitude to persist for so long without a clear, time-bound and effective resolution strategy”.

The lawmaker said the stakeholders’ meeting was convened to establish the facts surrounding the incident, assess the response so far, identify obstacles and agree on practical and measurable steps towards resolving the crisis.

He said the committee expect detailed briefings from the operating companies, NUPRC, NOSDRA and other relevant agencies on the cause, extent and present status of the seepage.

Pondi also said representatives of Bille will be allowed to present their concerns and explain the relief and interventions required by the community.

“Most importantly, we want to move from prolonged discussion to concrete action and lasting resolution,” he said.

Presenting the agency’s technical findings, a Director of NOSDRA, Dr Yusuf Rigasa, confirmed the presence of several gases, including hydrogen sulphide, methane, volatile organic compounds and carbon dioxide, in parts of Bille, Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State.

Rigasa said investigations had established what he described as “multi-point subsurface gas bubbling” at several locations, including the premises of the Government Primary and Secondary School.

He said the school had subsequently been abandoned, while gas bubbling was also detected around waterways and mangrove areas.

According to him, NOSDRA conducted an air-quality assessment on December 6, 2025, at 19 locations and recorded elevated levels of hydrogen sulphide, methane, volatile organic compounds and carbon dioxide.

He explained that hydrogen sulphide has a characteristic rotten-egg odour, while methane is highly flammable and potentially explosive.

Rigasa said the levels recorded during the assessment exceeded applicable regulatory thresholds.

He added that laboratory analysis of samples collected on December 16, 2025, also revealed elevated levels of total petroleum hydrocarbons in groundwater, surface water and sediment.

The findings, he said, showed that soil, surface water and groundwater in parts of Bille had been affected by pollution.

The NOSDRA official said the agency’s technical presentation to the Minister of Petroleum Resources indicated that the gas seepage was probably biogenic, resulting from the degradation of organic matter.

He stressed, however, that the agency had not established that the gas originated from a hydrocarbon source.

Rigasa said the technical team had compared the situation with the 1986 Lake Nyos gas disaster in Cameroon, where a sudden release of carbon dioxide killed about 1,700 people and large numbers of animals.

He, however, stressed that NOSDRA had not identified any oil and gas operator as the source of the seepage.

According to him, the agency worked with operators including Renaissance, Eroton and New Cross, as well as the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, during the preliminary investigation.

He said NUPRC had also indicated that it had no record of pipelines in the immediate area where the seepage was occurring.

“That also tells us our findings, because we searched for oil and gas assets at the locations. There were none. That is why we are not able to actually pin a certain operator to what is actually happening,” he said.

Rigasa said NOSDRA’s findings had been corroborated by NUPRC, while a reservoir survey was ongoing to determine whether there was any connection to an underground hydrocarbon reservoir.

He explained that NUPRC was responsible for the reservoir investigation, while NOSDRA’s mandate was primarily environmental.

“What we can confirm for the House is that the air, the groundwater, the surface water and the sediment in the swampy areas in that village, they are all polluted,” Rigasa added.

The Bille Kingdom Chiefs Council also used the hearing to raise fresh concerns about the impact of the gas seepage on the community.

Secretary-General of the council, Chief Luckyman Egbila, Opu Gbolo III of Ancient Bille Kingdom, said the incident began on November 6, 2025, in the mangrove area where women had gone to harvest periwinkles.

He explained that Bille was predominantly a fishing community situated on a riverine island and accessible only by water.

Egbila said the community immediately alerted the relevant authorities, leading to an initial visit by NOSDRA and subsequent assessments.

He said although NOSDRA made recommendations, including the excavation of some areas, the community was not given the full reports of the investigations.

According to him, residents were eventually forced to travel to Abuja and write to relevant agencies after failing to receive satisfactory responses from regulators.

Egbila explained that further engagements were later held with operators, during which air quality, soil and water tests were conducted.

However, he said the community again did not receive the results of the tests.

Egbila said the situation had continued to deteriorate, with gas bubbling reported in several mangrove areas.

“Up till now, we are yet to see anything. Just as it happened the first time, they have gone back to sleep.

“Our people cannot go to fishing. Most of the mangroves are bubbling. Particularly, we don’t have water to drink. We don’t have water to eat with,” he said.

The community leader also alleged that dugout wells had become contaminated, while some residents, including children, had developed health problems.

He said the Rivers State Government had provided N100 million in palliative support, part of which was used to provide food and conduct a medical outreach.

However, he maintained that the intervention was inadequate given the length and severity of the crisis.

Egbila said NUPRC had also provided food items to the community, with contributions from operators and other oil and gas companies, but the supplies lasted only a few days.

He called for the immediate provision of potable water.

“Water is life. We can’t exist without potable drinking water,” he said.

The Bille representative also appealed for the permanent resolution of the gas seepage, saying residents needed to return to fishing and other economic activities.

He said the community hosts two major oil mining leases, OML 18 and OML 24, as well as gas infrastructure, and contributes significantly to the national economy.

Egbila said the crisis had also affected education in the community, forcing pupils to leave the primary school because of concerns over exposure to the emissions.

He added that the secondary school was considering reducing teaching hours to limit students’ exposure to the affected air.

He appealed for the upgrading of the community’s primary health centre and the deployment of resident doctors.

According to him, residents face serious difficulties accessing medical care in Port Harcourt because Bille can only be reached by water.

“Most times when people fall sick, by the time you rush them, get the boats and get to Port Harcourt, we keep losing these souls and lives,” he said.

Egbila further raised concerns about the condition of water from boreholes, alleging that some water that initially appeared clear turned black shortly after being pumped.

He urged the Federal Government, regulatory agencies and oil and gas companies to provide safe drinking water, address the health and livelihood consequences and find a lasting solution to the seepage.

Meanwhile, the chairman said the committee will proceed with a legislative hearing into the oil spill affecting Odidi Federated Community in Delta State.

He said the incident had reportedly persisted for more than five months.

According to him, the hearing will establish when the spill occurred and was reported, its cause, the containment measures taken, the extent of the affected environment, the state of remediation and why the spill had continued for so long.

“Our approach will be fair, objective and evidence-based. We are not here to prejudge any party, but to establish the facts, promote accountability and facilitate solutions,” he said.

Pondi described the Bille and Odidi cases as examples of the wider environmental and developmental problems confronting the South-South region.

He said communities in the region continued to bear a heavy environmental burden despite their significant contribution to Nigeria’s oil and gas economy.

“This contradiction must be addressed. The wealth derived from the natural resources of the Niger Delta must not come at the unacceptable cost of the health, livelihoods and future of its people,” he said.

The committee chairman said the House had a constitutional responsibility to ensure effective oversight and accountability, particularly among institutions responsible for environmental protection and resource management.

He warned that the proceedings must not end with expressions of concern without concrete implementation.

“We expect clear resolutions, firm commitments, defined responsibilities and measurable timelines,” he said.

Pondi added that immediate interventions should begin without delay, while technical assessments and remediation should be properly planned, funded and monitored.

He assured residents of Bille and Odidi that the House had heard their concerns and would continue to press for appropriate action.

“You deserve prompt intervention, effective remediation, meaningful relief and a clear pathway towards restoring your environment and livelihoods,” Pondi said.

He said the ultimate objective was to build a South-South region where natural resources could be developed responsibly, host communities protected, environmental incidents addressed promptly and economic development pursued alongside environmental sustainability, social justice and human dignity.