Oil theft war: Minister commissions eight gun boats in Rivers
…Says over 9m barrels of crude lost to vandals
Barth Ndubuwah, Port Harcourt
In her resolve to end the menace of crude oil theft, illegal oil bunkering and pipeline vandalism in the nation, the Federal Government, through the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has commissioned 8 Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps(NSCDC) Gunboats, to wage a full scale war, against the perpetrators of this heinous crime.
The move became necessary to strengthen the combative capacity of NSCDC Anti Vandalism Squad, stemming the tide of huge revenue loss to the Federal Government in the Oil Sector.
Performing the official commission of the gunboats in PortHarcourt, Rivers State towards a renewed fight against economic saboteurs, by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Minister of Interior, described the incidences of oil theft as an organized crime reaping the nation of accrued revenue running to million of dollars annually.
“The Country in recent past, had recorded various occurrences of crude oil theft and reports have shown that the country loses million of dollars daily such that of the 141 million barrels of oil produced, in the 1st quarter of year 2022, only 132 million barrels of oil were received at export terminals,the aftermath results further reveal that over 9 million barrels of oil was lost to crude oil theft,” the Minister said.
He decried the negative impact of crude oil theft and oil pipeline vandalism in the nation.
Aregbesola called on all Security Agencies to shun Inter-Agency rivalries and synergize by supporting the fight against oil theft, in order to salvage and rid the nation’s economy of saboteurs.
The Minister further maintained that the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps as the lead Agency in safeguarding Critical National Assets and Infrastructure is mandated to use the available logistics provided by the Government to reduce crime rate and by extension take the war against crude oil theft to the camp of the enemies.
While extolling the role of Government in the provision of necessary logistics to enhance the fight against oil pipeline vandalism across the nation, the NSCDC Commandant General(CG), Dr Ahmed Abubakar Audi, affirmed that the 8 newly commissioned gunboats will boost the morale of the Corps in combating the menace of crude oil theft along the waterways.
“The NSCDC is generally expected to effectively safeguard Critical Infrastructure and oil installations, which are very central and vital, to the socio-economic development of the nation.
“The Corps is saddled with the mandate to guard against oil theft, illegal oil bunkering through the provision of physical security to oil pipelines against vandalism.
“Therefore, any threat to the oil and gas sector is automatically considered as a high security concern owing to the debilitating effects it has on national development.
“It also constitutes environmental degradation, pollution, destruction of land and aquatic life, loss of means of livelihood and drastic reduction in the inflow of foreign exchange needed to bolster the economy of the nation,” the CG said.
He affirmed that a marching order has been issued to all Zonal Commanders, State Commandants and Heads of Anti Vandal Unit, across formations to be battle ready with a renewed vigour to stamp out oil theft and pipeline vandalism in the nation.
He reiterated the Corps’ determination and unwavering commitment to the war against illegal oil bunkering and assured the Government and the entire nation that the gunboats would be distributed to States in the coastal region as the Corps continue to collaborate with the Military and other Security Agencies.
He enjoined Nigerians to assist Security Agencies in winning the war against the enemies of the nation by volunteering credible intelligence and information that could lead to possible arrest and prosecution of oil pipeline vandals and saboteurs of the nation’s economy.
NCDMB emerges best MDA in ease of doing business ranking
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has been adjudged the best among all Ministries, Departments and Agencies in the country in the latest Executive Order (EO1) performance ranking for Ease of Doing Business from January to June.
The report is compiled by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), under the office of the Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria.
A statement posted on the board’s website on Wednesday said NCDMB came tops with 81.48 per cent, according to the report, released officially on Tuesday in Abuja.
The statement said PEBEC was established in 2016 by President Muhammadu Buhari to address bottlenecks and bureaucratic constraints to executing business in Nigeria.
According to the statement, the implication of this performance ranking shows that NCDMB has delivered service in a quality, efficient and effective manner in the past six months to its diverse stakeholders.
It said over the years, the board had moved from the 27th position in 2019 to being the most improved MDA in the country and the third position in 2020, and presently the first in the country.
Commenting on the report, the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Mr Simbi Wabote explained that the “trend of the positions the board has been ranked shows the impressive level of work we have put into delivering quality service over the years.
“With the right attitude, training, and support, we have achieved the number one spot.
“We would not rest on our oars and we will continue to give our utmost best and commitment to delivering quality service to our stakeholders and also explore areas of improvement.”
Wabote thanked the NCDMB’s employees for their efforts in accomplishing the target he had set in June 2021 when he signed the Board’s SERVICOM Service charter.
He disclosed that the board signed Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with key stakeholders in the oil and gas sector to ensure promptness and effectiveness in the delivery of its statutory responsibilities.
Wabote said: “At some point, we challenged the oil and gas industry that we have a 15-day rule that anything they send to us and they do not get a response within 15 days, they should assume that it has been approved.
“Nobody has been able to take us to task on it because we met the SLA that we signed.”
