- Acting EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Magu, has called for stiffer penalties against those who engage in illegal oil bunkering and theft in the south-south
- Magu said the south-south remains the cash cow of Nigeria and tackling oil theft is a patriotic duty
- In response to Magu’s call, the Nigerian Navy offered to do what it can in tackling oil theft
The acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, has called for concerted efforts to combat illegal oil bunkering and theft in the south-south by applying stiffer penalties.
EFCC spokesman, Tony Orilade, said in statement on Wednesday, March 20 that Magu stated this when he visited the commander, Nigeria Navy Ship Pathfinder (NNS Pathfinder) Cmdr S. Bura in Port Harcourt, NAN reports.
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Legit.ng gathers that Orilade said in the statement that Magu was represented by Port Harcourt’s zonal head of the commission, Abdulrasheed Bawa.
According to Magu, the south-south remains the cash cow of Nigeria and tackling oil theft is not only a matter of law enforcement, but a patriotic duty.
“Seventy to 80 percent of our national revenue comes from the oil sector.
“It is important that the menace of crude oil theft and illegal dealing in petroleum products is tackled frontally.
“We need more of your cooperation to achieve this,’’ he said.
Speaking earlier during the visit, Bura stressed that the Navy was always ready to offer its best services in the interest of the nation.
He said: “We are stakeholders. Nigeria belongs to all of us and as a service, we have zero tolerance for illegality.
“We do not compromise. I am personally allergic to indiscipline; and so you can be sure that we will always do what we should to tackle oil theft.’’
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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the Nigerian Army handed over a tugboat and a barge, allegedly seized from oil thieves, to the EFCC in Delta state.
Spokesman of the commission, Wilson Uwujaren, however, did not say whether the suspects were arrested.
Uwujaren stated that the tugboat (MV Omar Success) and the barge (EBIs 1) were allegedly being used for illegal oil bunkering when they were seized.
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Source: Legit.ng
