Joel Ajayi
A leading advocacy group in Nigeria under the aegis of People’s Wellbeing Association (PWA) has said that the current pipeline surveillance contract is a gross violation of the Petroleum Industrial Act (PIA), calling for a forensic audit of the contract from inception.
It should be recalled that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) awarded the pipeline surveillance contract to Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, led by Government Ekpemupolo (Tompolo), in August/September 2022.
The contract, valued at approximately ₦48 billion annually, aimed to curb oil theft in the Niger Delta.
The PWA’s Head of Communication Unit, Comrade Abba Abubakar said this in a statement in Abuja on Wednesday.
Abubakar who called for equitable distribution of the contract to host communities, said the present structure of the pipeline surveillance contract remained skewed, benefitting a few other than the major stakeholders.
“The current pipeline surveillance contract is a violation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) with regards to the effective participation of host communities in protecting oil facilities located in their domain.
“The present arrangement where the pipeline security was entrusted in the hands of a few companies violates section 257 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which states that host communities must be directly involved in protecting oil facilities located in their ancestral lands,” he said.
Abubakar who reiterated calls for forensic audit of the contract, said Pipeline protection should involve indigenous stakeholders from the ethnic nations and communities where these facilities are located.
According to him, the present structure reflects an unhealthy concentration of opportunity and influence, leaving many oil-producing ethnic nations with little or no meaningful participation.
He said that the monopolistic arrangement of the pipeline security framework has instead created rancour, resentment thereby undermining unity in the Niger Delta region.
Abubakar vehemently condemned the contract of exclusion, saying that any system that excludes many of the host communities from pipeline protection undermines fairness and regional stability.
The PWA Communication Unit Head regretted that the federal government made a huge financial commitment in the area of pipeline surveillance over the years, yet the nation’s crude output is minimal compared to what it used to be.
Abubakar however called for a forensic audit of the ₦4 billion monthly pipeline surveillance contract, due to brazen instances of economic exclusion and calls for better regional distribution.