Federal Government high-powered delegation visited Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, to seek collaboration to end oil bunkering and environmental pollution in the Niger Delta region.
According to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, “Oil theft has become alarming rates and it is no longer sustainable. The Federal Government cannot do it alone. The stealing is actually going on in the communities and in states. So we felt that we must bring everybody on board so that we’re able to effectively fight this menace.”
On his part, the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor said: “Part of our official engagements is ensuring that negative activities of some citizens who are engaged in criminal activities within the oil and gas sector are brought to a halt.”
The Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), disclosed that the country is “Losing close to 2 billion naira every month as a result of the actions of these vandals and criminals not necessarily stolen, but because we cannot continue to operate. We have shut down our facilities and investment can no longer come nobody will come and put his money into our country as we go forward.”
Governor Diri called for urgent actions to help end the ugly trend for the interests of the region, and the country. “We’re talking about our environment that has been brazenly polluted by the activities of these oil bunkerers. If you go to our communities now, all you see is oil floating in our rivers and that has led to the locals not having a source of livelihood anymore.”
The Governor assured the delegation that he will collaborate with them to ensure that oil theft is brought to an end.
The Minister of State and his team were on a tour of oil producing states in the country to have first-hand information on the level of activities of oil bunkers including their effects on the environment, as well as the economy and to source for lasting solutions.
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