Pipeline vandalism: FG loses over 200,000 barrels daily, expends N60bn yearly for repair, maintenance — Lai Muhammed

By Uthman Salami

The Minister of information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Muhammed, has disclosed that the federal government is losing an average of over 200,000 barrels of daily to pipeline vandalism.

The Minister, who stated this at the 20th edition of the Town Hall meeting, which he said was meant to give regular accounts of the administration stewardship, said the federal government expends over N60 billion yearly to repair and maintain vandalized points.

Muhammed lamented that the destruction of this infrastructure has left great socioeconomic and environmental implications burnden on Nigerians since chunk of the country’s budgetary revenues and 95 per cent of foreign exchange earnings come from the sector.

The minister while quotimg some statistics revealed that “between January 2019 and September 2020, 1,161 pipeline points across the country were vandalized.

“Apart from the impact on the nation’s earnings, consider also the environmental problems caused by the incessant vandalism, in terms of freshwater pollution, air pollution, soil pollution, etc., and you will appreciate the enormity of the problem,” he added.

He said the aim of the Town Hall meeting was to “create in the public mind that government property are indeed citizens’ property and so must be protected for the benefit of all, sensitize communities, especially those where infrastructure are located, to be conscious of the import of such and protect them.

He added it is also meant to “Expose, arrest and prosecute all those who engage in buying pilfered infrastructure items along with those who bring such to them to sell as well as “sensitize the larger citizenry to support the widespread campaign on the protection and ownership of public infrastructure/assets, especially in the Railways, Roads and Aviation sectors.”

Mohammed however chided “the destruction of public infrastructure by some unpatriotic Nigerians,” which he said, called for great concern and immediate action.

He further added that “It is common knowledge that Nigeria has long suffered massive infrastructure deficit due to decades of neglect, population explosion and the absence of maintenance culture.

“But since coming into office in 2015, the Muhammadu Buhari Administration has embarked on a rapid economic growth with equity-people-centered economic management as well as prioritizing human capital development through enhanced social services and infrastructure development.

“Despite a drastic drop in revenues and competing priorities, especially that of tackling insecurity, the Administration has invested heavily in providing new infrastructure, in addition to reconstructing and rehabilitating existing ones.

“To have such laudable efforts of the government thwarted by some unpatriotic citizens through wanton destruction of critical infrastructure is totally unacceptable.

“To have railway tracks subjected to wanton destruction, bridge railings removed, manhole covers pilfered, street lights and other power infrastructure, oil pipelines, telecoms facilities and critical aviation infrastructure damaged or stolen do not augur well for our growth and development.

“Apart from endangering the lives of fellow innocent citizens, such unpatriotic acts take a toll on the government’s limited revenue, as it seeks to replace, rehabilitate or totally reconstruct such destroyed infrastructure.”

“This Administration’s massive investment in infrastructure since coming into office, despite dwindling resources. With far less resources, the Administration has recorded more infrastructural development than was achieved in all the 16 years of the previous Administration,” he said.

Muhammed re-emphasised the federal government efforts to bridge the nation’s infrastructural deficit.

He, however,  said, “We must do everything in our power to stop the wanton destruction of public infrastructure.”