CSOs call on FG to halt crude theft
A coalition of civil society groups, including ActionAid Nigeria, BudgIT, the Centre for Social Justice, and Christian Aid, have urged the Federal Government to put an immediate stop to the disastrous crude oil theft in the delta region and save the nation enormous sums of money for budgetary needs.
According to the group, 400,000 barrels of crude oil are wasted each day, resulting in a monthly loss of $1.2 billion and an annual loss of $14.4 billion (N6.272 trillion). The organization contends that adding the amount to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s books will boost both the company’s profits and the dividends given to the government.
Additionally, the civil society organizations requested the authorities to make sure that the accountant-general of the federation transformed the interim operating surplus monthly remittance and reconciliation of cumulative remittances after year-end into a monthly deduction.
The CSOs made the demand while submitting their suggestions for the federal government’s Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper for 2023–2025.
The group’s leader, Mr. Eze Onyekpere, asserted that the federal government need not wait for its enterprises to remit but rather that the platform should be configured to enable automatic deduction, ensuring that the funds owed to the federal government are never, ever available for expenditure by government-owned enterprises.
The organization also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to take into account ousting the NNPCL leadership, whose supervision is responsible for the rise in crude oil theft. As an alternative, the CSOs anticipate that the government will give the NNPC and the security agencies leadership specific theft reduction goals.
“Ensure that the reported quantity of PMS consumed every day is not inflated by conducting a transparent consumption audit and cut extant fuel subsidy by 50 percent and save not less than N3.36 trillion in 2023.”
The group asked Nigerians to cast aside all emotions and choose competent leaders who will efficiently run the country’s public offices before the general elections of 2023.
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