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By Joel Anekwe
Following the huge losses and danger posed to the nation’s economy by crude oil theft, a forum of civil society organisations and the media has called for a more comprehensive and centralised policy on the fight against the menace.
Reports has it that Nigeria currently loses up to 10% of her annual budget to the activities of oil thieves, a very grim situation for the struggling economy.
Believing that the absence of a comprehensive and centralised policy is one of the main reasons crude oil theft subsists at a record level globally, the forum called for the establishment of a regulatory agency in the form of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), dedicated specifically to the fight against oil theft.
Also observing that existing laws against crude oil theft were not stringent enough or in sync with current realities, the forum called for the passage, without further delay, of the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB) by the National Assembly, noting that it provides penalties to adequately address the offence.
These were part of the many recommendations by the CSO/media workshop held to discuss the findings from the research report on crude oil theft and a study on the existing refineries from a cost perspective, efficiency, and value for money basis, held recently in Lagos.
It also called for consolidated action around accountability, transparency and understanding the use of funds from crude oil sales; utilisation of high tech in metering and mapping the movement of crude from extraction to exportation.
In addition, participants agreed that with stringent penalties for oil theft perpetrators and allied practitioners, better overall law enforcement in the Niger Delta and improved oil sector governance, a reasonable chunk of the losses incurred by the country on oil theft would be mitigated.
Niyi Awodeyi, consultant with the Nigeria Natural Resource Charter (NNRC) in his presentation at the workshop traced the history of oil theft in Nigeria to as early as the 1970s, pointing out that the nefarious trade has been sustained by the diversity of interests.
Awodeyi, who is also a NEC member of the committee on Crude Oil Theft Prevention, stated that oil theft in Nigeria was also aggravated by the politically induced complex nature of the country’s oil gas sector.
He said that other factors encouraging oil theft in Nigeria include poor governance of oil revenue and corruption; inadequate implementation of international best practices by oil companies; high youth unemployment resulting from the socio-economic conditions in the Niger Delta region and youth unemployment which stands at 33.1% as of Q3 2017.
“Combined unemployment and underdevelopment rate for the entire youth labour force (15-35 years) was 52.65% or 22.64 million, 10.96 million unemployed and another 11.68 million under-employed, increasing levels of unemployment are matched by increasing levels of criminal activity in the Niger Delta,” he said.
But speaking further on ways to curb crude oil theft, 75% of which he said was done with the connivance of the Joint Military Task Force (JTF), created to fight perpetrators, Awodeyi advocated for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to track the movement payments through the banks.
Awodeyi said: “If we are really serious about curtailing these huge losses, we just follow the money. We track the money and pin it on them. Go to the accounts of people and track the money, follow the money trail and we shut these things down.”
Speaking earlier, Michael Faniran, outcome lead, Industry Restructuring, Nigeria Natural Resource Charter (NNRC), said the workshop was aimed at increasing access to information, improving knowledge and enhancing the capacity and advocacy skills of CSO and media, as well as increasing the level of public commentary on the identified issues and influence government action.
He said: “We must work to reduce leakages in the oil and gas sector and ensure optimal benefits from the industry, and fight corruption in the sector generally.”
He explained that in pursuing these objectives, NNRC would work with its advocacy partners to get attention through mass action, especially by increasing and sustaining advocacy at different levels until “we inspire action and change.”
