L
LequteMan
Guest
Nigeria- The Speaker, House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, at the inauguration of the House of Representatives Ad hoc Committee on Crude Oil Theft in the Nigeria on Wednesday in Abuja has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission ( EFCC) to arrest and prosecute suspected crude oil thieves in the country.
According to him, EFCC must act in collaboration with international law enforcement agencies to achieve its objective.
"This House must use its influence to ensure that the law enforcement agencies approach their investigation of the criminals engaged in oil field theft from a more sophisticated angle.
"We need to put in place the right kind of legislation to improve the monitoring of on-shore and off-shore areas in order to discourage vandalism.
"We need to establish a robust regulatory framework to plug all loopholes through which all sorts of official and unofficial corruption thrive in the oil sector.''
"Oil theft in our country has now reached an industrial scale, we need the concerted efforts of all stakeholders who must be invited and heard at a scheduled 5-day public hearing.
"There is also no doubt that we must try, as much as possible, to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), as soon as possible."
He urged members of the committee to scrutinise the report by the Royal Institute for International Affairs, which alleged that Nigeria’s oil was being stolen not just from pipelines, but also from tank farms and export terminals.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the committee, Rep. Bashir Adamu (PDP-Jigawa) said illegal bunkering had caused Nigeria an estimated N780 billion annually and that unless government summoned the courage to fight the menace, the situation would further worsen the country's economic woes.
The committee has been saddle with task of determining how deep pipelines are buried and if they are accessible to oil thieves; how stolen crude oil is transported and also to determine the owners of illegal vessels, among others.
According to him, EFCC must act in collaboration with international law enforcement agencies to achieve its objective.
"This House must use its influence to ensure that the law enforcement agencies approach their investigation of the criminals engaged in oil field theft from a more sophisticated angle.
"We need to put in place the right kind of legislation to improve the monitoring of on-shore and off-shore areas in order to discourage vandalism.
"We need to establish a robust regulatory framework to plug all loopholes through which all sorts of official and unofficial corruption thrive in the oil sector.''
"Oil theft in our country has now reached an industrial scale, we need the concerted efforts of all stakeholders who must be invited and heard at a scheduled 5-day public hearing.
"There is also no doubt that we must try, as much as possible, to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), as soon as possible."
He urged members of the committee to scrutinise the report by the Royal Institute for International Affairs, which alleged that Nigeria’s oil was being stolen not just from pipelines, but also from tank farms and export terminals.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the committee, Rep. Bashir Adamu (PDP-Jigawa) said illegal bunkering had caused Nigeria an estimated N780 billion annually and that unless government summoned the courage to fight the menace, the situation would further worsen the country's economic woes.
The committee has been saddle with task of determining how deep pipelines are buried and if they are accessible to oil thieves; how stolen crude oil is transported and also to determine the owners of illegal vessels, among others.