The House of Representatives has backed the partnership between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and Government Ekpemupolo (Tompolo), an ex-militant and chairman of Tantita Security Service, on the security of major oil pipelines and other installations in Niger Delta.
A 24-man high-powered delegation of the House which stated this position on an overnight visit to the Niger Delta region also commended the renewed efforts by the Federal Government to stem the menace of oil theft in the country.
The delegation led by Peter Akpatason, the deputy majority leader who embarked on the tour of the riverine areas of Delta State, also lauded the Nigerian Navy for their continued fight against oil thieves.
Speaking at the end of the exercise, Akpatason said with the unity of purpose shown so far by the public and private security outfits, the country will win the war against oil theft, resulting in more outputs of crude oil and the generation of more revenue to fund the national budget instead of borrowing.
“Our mission is to evaluate the situation and also to be able to make a contribution in legislative terms towards ameliorating the situation and in this case, the Niger Delta in particular, towards enhancing the capacity of this nation to produce and sell oil. This would also enable us to fund the budget and promote development of both human capital and infrastructure of this country.
“In the course of this journey, we have visited different sites, including oil production facilities, pipelines, well-heads and flow stations. As a result of the recent partnership between Tantita, your company and NNPC, we have seen significant improvement in the ability of Nigeria to produce hydrocarbons which basically is the major foreign earnings for this country.
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“As concerned citizens, we believe whatever that can be done to ensure improvement in the nation’s capacity to earn income for funding development, and reducing borrowing which has become a thing of concern to many Nigerians, that effort must be supported.
“And that is exactly what is happening now; we felt that in the course of our tour of the industry, we should come here to appreciate you and urge you to do more. We have seen the improvement in the creeks, in the land areas,” Akpatason told Tompolo.
“Some of the community people told us how free they feel to go about their fishing activities. It tells us that when the local people are given the mandate to gather information and support the security forces, and also help combat crime in their locality, it goes a long way to solve the problem.
“Because of insecurity, a lot of people feel uncomfortable going about their business activities. The oil companies complained about spending so much money to fix pipelines when they are vandalised and all of this adds to the cost of production and reduces what gets to the Federal Government for development.
“So, every effort that has been made and being made towards ensuring improved security, to us, is a thing that must be appreciated and supported. So in any way that we can achieve this, we will continue to support,” Akpatason said.
In his remarks, Tompolo lauded the ongoing efforts to secure the oil facilities as well as harmony within the oil-producing communities. He urged the lawmakers to evolve necessary legislative instruments and policies to sustain the gains so far recorded.
“I want to thank all of you very well for coming. I will not disappoint you. We will do our part and I still want all of you to do your own part over there,” Tompolo told the delegation.
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