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In recent times you might have noticed that the airwaves have been dominated with news of crude oil theft and the fight against this decades long problem. Central to most of the stories we hear is the name Tantita and depending on whose narrative you listen to, they are either the good or the bad guys.
The backstory to all of this is that in the twilight of President Buhari’s administration he realised that the greatest threat to the Nigerian nation and her economy was the organised cartel that steal our nation’s crude oil daily. He went all out in the fight against them and contracted Tantita and a few other outfits to collaborate with our security agencies in this fight.
What these guys had hoped was that with the advent of the Tinubu administration this fight would lose steam but to their shock and dismay the current government has taken the fight to the next level. So why is Tantita in the news? Why do we hear calls for the Fed Govt to scrap the contract to Tantita?
It is very simple. Tantita is beating the heck out of the bad guys daily. The bad guys are frustrated as it is no longer business as usual. Wherever they go, Tantita is waiting for them. Their vessels are being destroyed, crew are getting arrested and stolen product is being recovered. This is indeed a bad time for the bad guys. A government who for over forty years looked the other way while a few stole her precious oil has no other choice but to fight back now. Nigeria is on the brink of economic collapse and the government now knows not to leave anything on the table for the bad guys.
Who are these bad guys? This is the question nobody wants to answer. Nigerians are tired of hearing that there are big men in the corridors of power behind this. Who are they? We are tired of hearing they are very powerful. Who are they? We are tired of hearing that vessels that were impounded by the Navy were released in the middle of the night. Who gave the instruction? We are tired of hearing that over N60b worth of crude is stolen every month. We want to know who these people are.
How can Nigeria be losing more oil revenue to criminals than what we sell officially? Why do allow some IOC’s under declare their daily production? Why do we allow some marginal field operators sponsor the theft of crude oil to add to their daily production? Who issues the permits the vessels use to carry stolen products? Who monitors our territorial waters and how are very large carriers allowed to come in and load stolen crude oil? Why this criminal conspiracy of silence amongst all those in this ecosystem? Nigeria is dying under the burden of debts but the same Nigeria is losing over N60b monthly to stolen products.
How can we watch some IOC’s perpetually under declare what they produce and what they export? Is this still the era of slave trade? Our children are dying, our nation is at war, our economy in tatters, tens of millions unemployed and we all keep quiet while a criminal cartel cripples Nigeria. For the first time in decades the Fed Govt is taking this fight seriously but they should go the extra mile by arresting and prosecuting all those involved both local and foreign.
This fight is not just for NNPCL and Tantita. It is a fight for all Nigerians. We are being duped. If rumours of current and former state governors being involved in bunkering are proven to be true, then the government must expose them. Expose former ministers and current minsters. Nigeria is bleeding and we must stop this bleeding now.
In the words of Martin Luther King Jr.: “We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there “is” such a thing as being too late. This is no time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous and positive action.”
People of Nigeria this is the time to act before it is too late. Our demand is simple: President Tinubu end the theft of Our oil and prosecute all those involved.
Text of a speech delivered by Presidential Candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Dumebi Kachikwu, at a press briefing in Abuja on August 30.
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