The Ijaw Youths Network (IYN) has called on the Federal Government and all Nigerians to give the requisite support to the ongoing campaign against oil theft being spearheaded by Tantita Security Services Limited, TSL.
The group also called on the leadership of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPC, and the security agencies to ensure that ongoing efforts curtail the massive theft of Nigeria’s oil resources are not sabotaged by people in strategic positions.
The pan-Ijaw group gave the admonition in a statement by its National Coordinator, Frank Ebikabo and Secretary, Federal Ebiaridor, at the weekend.
The IYN expressed deep worry over the arrest of operatives of TSL by the Navy in Ibeju Lekki, Lagos, for alleged oil theft a few days ago.
- 8.3m persons in need of humanitarian interventions in Northeast – FG
- Terrorism: Military lacks training on evidence gathering, prosecution of criminals – PSC chair
It noted that the Federal Government and the NNPC which took the commendable step to engage the private security outfits to fight the unprecedented theft of the nation’s crude resources in August 2022, should be firm against the surreptitious move to discredit the ongoing efforts.
The group said those behind the criminal theft of the nation’s resources were deploying their massive intelligence, weight and resources to stifle the fight against oil theft.
It described the conflict in the statement made by the Nigerian Navy on the arrest of the rogue vessel MT Praisel and the arrest of five Tantita operatives for purported oil theft and the rush to the media to discredit the firm as confusing, unhealthy and suspicious.
It urged Nigerians not to forget in a hurry the terrifying facts about the daily theft of 200,000 barrels of crude oil by the rampaging oil thieves amounting to the loss of over 120 million barrels of crude oil from January to September 2022 translating to $12.6 billion in less than a year.
The group recalled the frank statement credited to the Group Managing Director of the NNPC that the engagement of the private security firms to secure the nation’s pipelines had achieved tremendous result with the increase in the daily oil production from 900 barrels per day to between 1.4 and 1.5 million barrels.
It cautioned against public display of rancour between those entrusted with the responsibility of coordinating concerted action against the syndicates of oil thieves, describing the current situation as serious.
The group which called for the immediate release of the operatives of TSL in custody of the Navy, further said that what the nation needed at this critical phase was total onslaught against oil theft and not a show of division among the organisations fighting the scourge.
The statement reads in part, “We therefore call on the President and indeed the NNPCL to be firm in sustaining the tempo of the ongoing campaign against oil theft.
“We also call on the Navy, a critical national institution, to keep a closer watch on the activities of its bases on the Niger Delta to avoid sending out a wrong signal to the society on this sensitive issue of the fight against oil theft.
“Nigerians remember the story behind the decision of the NNPCL to engage Tantita and two other private security firms to aid the efforts of the security agencies to fight the scourge which threatened the nation’s security.
“The Navy should not see Tantita as a competitor but a proactive ally making intensified patriotic efforts to rid Nigeria of a cancerous economic challenge.”
Join Daily Trust WhatsApp Community For Quick Access To News and Happenings Around You.
