By Ibrahim Hassan-Wuyo

A Northern group, the Concerned Northern Forum and other civil society groups in Northern Nigerian have called on government to end the subsidy regime and terminate the 4 billion Per Month Pipeline Surveillance Contract awarded To Government Ekpemupolo Aka Tompolo. 

They said government should have a critical look at the revelations by the Controller General of the Nigeria Customs and that of Chief of Naval Staff on the true state of subsidy and stolen crude caims 

They called on the Federal Government, to declare state of emergency in NNPC and urged the National Assembly to make the ongoing subsidy probe public.

Speaking at a press conference in Kaduna on Sunday,Chairman, Concerned Northern Forum,Malam Ibrahim Bature said since the revelation of the award of Pipeline Surveillance contract to Government Ekpemupolo aka Tompolo and others came to public knowledge, “the country has been charged over the decision of the Federal Government and NNPC Ltd ,to award security contract to private individuals, especially those with negative records of raising arms against the state before they were granted amnesty.”

“We call you here today to lend our voice to the national discuss, and to also express the views of our members and the people of Northern Nigeria. It is a known fact that our country and most importantly, the Northern region is profusely bleeding human blood, as a result of activities of terrorists which includes but not limited to Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP), Boko Haram, Banditry, Farmers/Herders clashes etc. All efforts by government seems to yield no results as the terrorist keep terrorizing our communities daily.”

According to the group, “While crude oil can be purchased in the market, the life of an individual is sacrosanct and can only be given by God. We wonder why the government we overwhelmingly voted for, would choose to pay attention to crude oil theft, more than the lives and properties of our people that voted them to power.”

‘The answer to the above poser is not farfetched. The Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Gambo faulted the outrageous and unrealistic figure being dished out as the volume of oil being stolen per day. Both the NNPC Ltd and Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources estimated that between 200,000-400,000 barrels of crude are stolen per day.”

“Vice Admiral Auwal Gambo stated that: “for instance, 100,000 barrels of crude oil is equivalent to 15.8 million litres of crude, which will require a five-ton barge to make 3,160 trips in a day to convey these products out of the creek.” Let us agree that you have many barges because of the time required to carry out these products. It means you will entirely close the navigable water heading out to sea, through the estuaries to embark them to transship them into  a mother vessel that will eventually take them out of the country.”

“By implication, if 400,000 barrels are stolen per day, which will be equivalent to 63.2million litres, it means Five ton barge will make 12,640 trips a days. Even if it is trailing in the speed of light that is not possible daily. Vice Admiral Gambo also affirmed our investigation by saying “it is of course, most unlikely considering the increased presence of security operatives in the maritime environment as well as the deluge of the subsisting operations of Dakatar Da Barawo by the Nigerian Navy.”

On the revelations by the Nigeria Customs boss, the group said the Nigeria Customs Service is the gatekeeper of what comes in and goes out of our country. 

“The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), through its Controller General also faulted the claims by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited that Nigerians consume “60 million litres of petrol daily”.

“He went further to ask the NNPC why they release 98 Million Litres into the market daily, while our daily consumption is pegged at 60 million liters? Nigerians are still awaiting the answer. Over 500 trucks with 70,000 litres carrying capacity are expected to lift the product daily out of Nigeria as smuggled content.”

“From the foregoing, the implication of the false claims by the NNPCL is that over 2,000 trucks might be working daily in Nigeria to steal either crude oil or imported refined fuel without being detected by our Satellite system, under the watchful eyes of NIGCOMSAT.” 

The group therefore,called on Mr President to look critically into the position of both the Nigeria Custom and Nigeria Navy over the outrageous claims of theft in the Oil and Gas sector by the NNPC. 

“Both can’t be wrong while the NNPC is right. Hence, heavy sanction should be imposed on the top management of the company.”

“Our group deduced that the subsidy regime which has regularly stopped the NNPC from contributing revenue into the Federation Account for sharing during FAAC meetings is the greatest crime being perpetrated against Nigerians which has denied them infrastructural development, hence, FG should consider ending the subsidy, so as to take the feeding bottle away from the mouths of cartels stealing our common wealth through the subsidy regime.”

“We vehemently reject and oppose the pipeline Surveillance Contract the NNPCLTD awarded to Tompolo, hence, it should be terminated with immediate effect.We urge the Federal Government to channel the 48 Billion Naira Tompolo will be earning annually to address the developmental and environmental need of the Niger Delta people. Rather than sharing such funds for the boys.”

“We call l on Mr President to immediately sack the Head of NIGCOMSAT for failing to effectively cover the territory and expose crime to the relevant authority, declare State of Emergency in the NNPCLTD by appointing Military Administrator to watch over the affairs of the Company pending on when investigation will be concluded into the subsidy regime that cost the country trillions of Naira annually.” 

“We commend the National Assembly for initiating the ongoing probe into the subsidy regime and to also urge them to make the process public, through live broadcast.”

“NNPCL management should not even try to make fool of Nigerians by saying both Nigerian Navy and Nigerian Custom are envious of them and trying to sabotage their hard work. We have realized the real oil theft is not done on the pipeline but in the office.”

“The contract awarded to Tampolo will only teach our youths, it’s better to be thugs, fugitive than a loyal citizen. With incidences like these, we have no choice than to answer the calls by some Northern Governors to defend ourselves against the Banditry and Kidnapping bedeviling our region, and this will resort to the use of weapons which will later result in another big problem in the future.We urge the FGN to please listen to our clarion call, do the needful so that the citizens will not rebel against the state,” the group said.