Why we launched advocacy against crude oil theft – NNF

Prominent Non-Governmental Organization committed to the promotion of sustainable community development initiatives through public private partnerships, New Nigeria Foundation, NNF, says the decision to launch advocacy campaign against crude oil theft, was premised on the belief that “government shouldn’t be sourcing for loans, if the losses recorded from crude oil theft are properly channeled”, apart from the adverse environmental and socio-economic effects of the outlawed act.

The Deputy Director of Programmes, New Nigeria Foundation, NNF, Bunmi Olatunde gave the explanation Friday May 17 in Effurun, Delta State, during a one-day advocacy round-table organized for Civil Society Organizations, CSOs and journalists on the fight against crude oil theft in Nigeria.

The NNF Deputy Director, while stressing that development can only be achieved if government have enough resources, emphasized the need for all stakeholders to work together to stop the increasing rate of crude oil theft.

According to her, data from the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, revealed that the amount of crude oil stolen daily in Nigeria was not readily available and the country was ranked number one in top five countries with the highest oil theft in 2014.

She noted that information available also put the amount spent on securing crude oil facilities in the last decade to be over 55billion dollars, with the crime becoming a multimillion-dollar illegal industry involving many stakeholders.

Participants at the advocacy round-table, opined that the military seemed helpless on what to do with the products seized from the oil thieves, even as they identified environmental pollution as well as destruction of aquatic and socio-economic lives as some of the adverse effects of crude oil theft.

Members of CSOs & Journalists (participants) listening to Bunmi Olatunde

While blaming poverty and lack of jobs as some of the causes of crude oil theft, the participants canvassed for re-orientation of the mindset of youths, with a view to changing their value system, embarking on consistent pressure on government to enforce laws against crude oil theft, making the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill an Act, developing the oil bearing communities through the ministries, departments and agencies saddled with the responsibility as well as providing the enabling environment for creation of jobs.

They also stressed the imperative for oil bearing communities to have responsible leadership, to be able to put government, the oil and gas companies and other critical stakeholders to task, in the quest at attaining the desired infrastructural as well as socio-economic development.

The need for government to accelerate plans for the take-off of modular refineries was also advocated.

Editor-in-Chief of Fresh Angle International, Ebule Anthony and Warri Correspondent of Guardian Newspaper, Chido Okafor, were among journalists that participated in the round-table.

A cross section of participants, shortly after the one-day advocacy round-table

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