FG to fight crude oil theft in Niger Delta with Army, Navy, Civil Defence officers

To effectively fight against crude oil theft in the Niger Delta region, the Federal Government has disclosed that it will deploy operatives of the Nigerian Army, Navy and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and other security agencies.

Consequently, it has set up an Inter-Ministerial Committee on the recovery of crude oil and illegally refined petroleum products in the creeks of the Niger Delta region.

The committee also comprised representatives of the Defense Headquarters ministries of Defence, Justice, Environment, the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA).

Solicitor-General of the Federation, Umar Etsu Mohammed, who inaugurated the committee in Abuja, yesterday, said the committee was put in place in line with government direction on security and economy for efficient management of recovered illegally refined petroleum products in the creeks.

The Federal Government also charged the committee to detect, report, evacuate, assess and ensure transparent disposal of the products with due consideration for the environment, among other terms of reference.

Mohammed said the Ministry of Justice would coordinate the process and house the secretariat of the committee, adding: “It is also my hope that the proceeds from this exercise will be a source of additional revenue for the country.’’

He pointed out that the content of the standard operations procedure (SOP) was drawn from the provisions of the Assets Tracing, Recovery and Management Regulations 2019.