Retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, the governor of Rivers State, has demanded stronger sanctions against oil thieves to stop the country’s oil and gas industry’s ongoing economic sabotage.
The administrator made this statement on Friday at the Government House in Port Harcourt while hosting the Senate Committee on Incessant Crude Oil Theft, which is being led by Senator Ned Nwoko as chairman.
Ibas argued that the country was devoid of important revenue that would help with development because of the weak punishment of offenders.
Also read: Ibas Promises To Address Security, Development Obstacles in Rivers, and More.
Your presence here is both significant and appropriate. He claimed that President Bola Tinubu’s reforms to boost oil production and support the nation’s infrastructure are at the heart of the country’s economic survival because of crude oil theft.
He praised the committee’s decision to investigate oil theft across states and terminals, and he hoped that Nigeria’s economy would benefit from their recommendations.
Rivers State’s improved intelligence gathering and inter-agency coordination contributed to the organization’s success in reducing pipeline vandalism.
He also mentioned discussions with traditionalists and community leaders, as well as the planned use of digital surveillance cameras over oil-rigged sites and Port Harcourt’s “Safe-City” security architecture.
We are committed to preventing threats to production as a major oil-producing nation. To protect assets and boost output, he said, “our goal is a secure, tech-driven monitoring framework.”
Ibas demanded strict prosecution of offenders to stop oil theft across the country and to stop convicted offenders from receiving deterrent punishment, tamper-proof metering, and fixing faulty metering, which accounts for 40% of oil losses.
He also advocated for greater naval and security funding to support the Nigerian Navy and maritime agencies and for the expansion of monitoring to international waters and backwaters, where large-scale theft occurs.
Senator Ned Nwoko affirmed the committee’s commitment to identifying and destroying off-shore and offshore criminal networks in his response.
To put an end to this threat, Rivers State must support us. We must work together to protect Nigeria’s resources because big-time thieves operate in international waters, he said.
Source: Channels TV
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