* Invite NNPC, AGIP, NIMASA, others

By Emman Ovuakporie & Johnbosco Agbakwuru

ABUJA—THE House of Representatives, yesterday commenced investigation into the activities of the Joint Task Force, JTF, in the Niger Delta, over burning and destruction of equipment seized from operators of illegal refineries.

Creek

Consequently, the ad hoc committee raised for the purpose, headed by Sule Nasir Garo,  (All Progressives Congress, APC, Kano), summoned the leadership of JTF, management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, as well as the affected communities, to submit memoranda.

One of the aims of the House resolution is to bring an end to the despoliation of the Niger Delta environment through the burning of equipment confiscated from illegal operators of refineries.

Others invited by the committee included the Federal Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Environment, to intimate the committee with the steps taken to forestall further pollution of the Niger Delta environment.

While setting up the committee, the House noted that communities in the Niger Delta “routinely suffer from the effects of wanton burning and destruction of oil tools and equipment sized from operators of illegal oil refineries which are usually done without recourse to international best practices.”

The House also said the actions of the JTF “have greatly polluted the environment and waters in the area and in the process, destroyed farm lands and killed fish, thereby jeopardizing farming and fishing, which are the mainstay of the people of the Niger Delta area.”

The committee was also mandated by the House to investigate the fire outbreak in Azuuama Community in Bayelsa State on July 9, 2015 which was allegedly caused by the use of dilapidated infrastructure and equipment by Nigeria Agip Oil Company, and resulted in the death of 14 persons.

It was also mandated to  investigate the activities of AGIP “with a view to ensuring that it carries out improvement of its facilities to forestall any such further incidents in the future and also determine the circumstances that led to the death of the 14 persons in Azuzuama Community.”

The committee chairman however  disclosed that members would visit AGIP installations across the region with the view to ascertaining the integrity of the company’s oil equipment and ensure that they were comparable to what were obtained in other parts of the world.

“We are not going after anybody, we are just going there to investigate and see what really happened. Also to create avenue through which we can make life more meaningful for the entire people of Nigeria. Nigeria is not an isolated country, AGIP Oil Company is not operating only in Nigeria, and we believe it is operating in other parts of the world. If see that there are lapses or AGIP is doing its operations not the same as what they are doing elsewhere in the world, we are going to tell AGIP you have to do your activities in line with international best practices.

“On the issue of destruction of oil equipment of illegal operators of refineries, we want to believe there is a proper way of destroying chemicals and equipment. If they are doing the destruction of equipment within the ambit of the law, then they must do it right. We also believe that if we do it right, Niger Delta environment will be clean and if that environment is clean, the aquatic lives will be there for people to fish and the farmlands will be okay for people to farm. In this situation, everybody is going to be winner in this assignment,” Garo declared.