Metro

Nigeria loses N1.29trn annually to crude oil theft, vandalism— Reps Speaker

Published

7 months ago

April 27, 2024

Speaker of Nigeria’s House of Representatives, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, has revealed that the country loses a whopping sum of N1.29 trillion to crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and other forms of criminality in the oil sector.

Tajudeen, who spoke at the commissioning of the Nigerian Navy Training Command at Eleme, Rivers State in South-South Nigeria on Friday, said about 300,000 barrels of crude oil were also lost per day to oil theft by bunkerers.

Tajudeen who was represented at the event by the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Defence, Hon. Babajimi Benson, stated that the crude oil theft and pipeline vandalization has continued to pose a challenge to the Nigerian Navy which has hindered the service from rising up to its mandate of contributing to the survival of the national economy.

“Unfortunately, it is estimated that Nigeria loses over 300,000 barrels of crude oil daily to oil theft, pipeline vandalism and other forms of criminality. This has led to revenue losses estimated at N1.29 trillion annually,” the Lower Chamber Speaker said.

Speaking further on steps taken to curb the menace, Abbas said:

“Concerned about the adverse effects of oil theft in Nigeria, I inaugurated a special committee on Crude Oil Theft Loses on November 22, 2023, to determine decisive remedial actions to be taken.

“I commend the Nigerian Navy on the steps taken so far, and I urge the Navy to sustain the momentum.”

Also speaking, Nigeria’s Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, thanked the Rivers State Government for the donation of the entire complex to demonstrate the existing cordial relationship between the Nigerian Navy and Rivers State.

Ogalla said the relocation of the Headquarters Naval Training Command from Lagos to Ebubu-Eleme in Rivers State would bolster human capacity development of personnel of the Nigerian Navy.

“It will also assist in providing the enabling environment for learning and enable us to carry out the statutory manning of the entire state, and national security of our country.

“This is in line with Mr President’s mandate given to us to provide the enabling environment for the harnessing of the enormous economic potential inherent in our blue economy for the overall good, national prosperity and development.”

The Naval chief assured that the Nigerian Navy would continue to carry out operations to ensure security of the nation’s maritime domain as well as secure Rivers State and the entire Niger Delta region.

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Metro

Finland-based Nigerians in panic as authorities search for Simon Ekpa’s sponsors

Published

3 hours ago

November 23, 2024

Isaac Dachen

Some Nigerians based in Finland have been thrown into panic mode following the arrest and detention of the self-styled Prime Minister of the Biafra Republic Government in Exile (BRIGE), Simon Ekpa, who was arrested on Thursday by Finnish authorities on terror-related charges.

Ekpa was arrested alongside four other individuals by Finnish authorities on suspicion of terror-related activities, including incitement to violence and financing terrorism.

The dissident had made himself infamous by using the social media to promote violent activities in southeastern Nigeria, including attacks and murder of civilians and security personnel.

According to some Nigerians in European country, following the arrest of the separatist leader and the four individuals suspected to be sponsors of his group known as IPOB-AutoPilots, the police have begun a manhunt for other sponsors, thus creating panic in the Nigerian community and those who may have had dealings with the agitator.

Several sources who spoke to journalists, said Nigerians in the European country are afraid of commenting on the arrest of Ekpa over fear of being attacked.

A Nigerian community leader, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, said that the Igbo community in the was gravely affected by the violent acts of the secessionist group.

“Everyone is afraid to speak about Ekpa’s arrest. The key people in Finland and the Igbo community at large are not ready to lend their voices either,” he said.

He added that some persons were being accused of reporting Ekpa to the police and were being threatened.

“A particular person they accused now, they’re after him. This happened before he (Ekpa) was even remanded; what will happen when they imprison him? Everyone is afraid. These people are very deadly.”

Another Nigerian who spoke acknowledged that there was serious tension among Nigerians in the country.

“People don’t want to speak about Ekpa for fear of being hunted by his followers. We believe that they will hunt whoever comes out to talk about their leader. But the Finnish Government is trying to get rid of the situation.”

Metro

65% of Nigerian households lack money for healthy food—Survey

Published

1 day ago

November 22, 2024

Isaac Dachen

A survey conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed that around 65% of Nigerian households, which is about two-thirds of the population, lack the financial means to eat healthy food.

According to the survey by the agency, the decline is a reflection of the multidimensional poverty in the country and the impact of continuous reduction in the purchasing power of Nigerians due to rising prices of goods and services.

And as a result, two-thirds of households in the country lack money to eat healthy, nutritious food, the NBS said.

Titled “Nigeria General Household Survey – Panel (GHS-Panel) Wave 5 (2023/2024),” the survey examined demographics, education, and health trends in Nigeria, comparing data from Wave 4 (2018/19) and Wave 5 (2023/24).

On food insecurity, the survey stated:

“Approximately two out of three households indicated being unable to eat healthy, nutritious or preferred foods because of lack of money in the last 30 days.

“Similarly, 63.8 per cent of households ate only a few kinds of food due to lack of money, 62.4 percent were worried about not having enough food to eat, and 60.5 percent ate less than they thought they should.”

It added that between Waves 4 and 5, the proportion of households that reported being worried about not having enough food to eat because of lack of money increased significantly, from 36.9 percent to 62.4 percent.

On access to energy, the survey revealed said:

“82.2 percent of urban households have electricity, compared to 40.4 per cent in rural areas. Nigerian households face an average of 6.7 power blackouts weekly.

“Cooking typically involves traditional three-stone stoves (65.0 percent), primarily using wood as fuel (70.2 per cent), but with use of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) rising significantly.

“Many households lack toilet facilities and rely on tube wells or boreholes for drinking water. Waste disposal is mostly informal, with 45.6 percent of households using bushes or streets,” it added.