From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
House of Representatives has said it will raise the target for all revenue generating Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), as a means of bridging budget deficits.
The speaker, Abbas Tajudeen, who stated this, on Wednesday, while inaugurating the House Special Ad-hoc Committee on Crude oil theft, said the country losses an estimate of 300, 000 barrel of crude oil daily to theft, vandalism and other criminal activities.
Abbas decried dwindle government revenue, stating that the country “is reported to incur losses of oil revenues estimated at N1.29 trillion annually due to industrial-scale theft.” Consequently, he noted that the main objective of the panel is to determine the immediate and remote causes of oil theft and recommend measures to curb the menace to the House.
The speaker explained that the setting up of the special ad-hoc committee underscores the commitment of the House to protect the country’s resources, for the benefit of all citizens and punish economic saboteurs.
He said ” I charge you, therefore, to investigate all dimensions of oil theft, focusing on the actions of all actors, including criminal gangs, militia groups, the local populace, company employees and security agencies…The findings and recommendations from your work will serve as a foundation for sustainable solutions; rather than ad-hoc measures. I also expect your efforts to contribute significantly to enhancing the integrity of our oil sector and promoting sustainable development.”
The chairman of the panel, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa, in his speech, said despite the contribution of the oil and gas sector to the national economy, the country is yet to get optimum benefits from the sector, owing to oil theft and losses through pipeline vandalism amongst others.
Ado-Doguwa said “Oil theft is large scale illegal business estimated to be worth $133 billion per year globally. This makes it the world’s biggest theft of a natural resource and is also considered to be the number one most smuggled natural resource globally. From the 2021 NEITI report, It is estimated that between 2019 – 2021 Nigeria lost 643 million barrels of crude amounting to $48 billion as a result of theft.”