It seems the Federal Government has now decided to go beyond its lamentation and wringing of hands on the vexed issue of crude theft, with its order that all anti-vandalism teams of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) nationwide be dissolved with immediate effect. Dr Ahmed Audi, the corps commandant-general who ordered the dissolution, said at a media briefing and emergency meeting with state commandants in Abuja that the action followed an order from the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola. The dissolution was sequel to investigation of allegations of corruption against some personnel of the NSCDC.
According to the corps commandant-general, the dissolution became necessary “because there are insinuations that security agencies act as accomplices and because we want to redeem the image of the service due to reports received about our officers on the field.” He added that “you are to note that all anti-vandal teams nationwide are hereby dissolved. All roadblocks mounted by such individuals should also immediately be dismantled.”
This is to pave way for reorganisation of the anti-vandalism teams. The intention is to move the personnel round, particularly those who have served six months upwards in the Niger Delta, to check what Audi described as “over-familiarisation” that could compromise the personnel. Fresh blood would thereafter be injected to reinvigorate the teams for greater efficiency.
This is a welcome development. Tongues have for years been wagging about security personnel’s collusion with the nameless elites that the Federal Government has been blaming for the massive crude theft. Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva, said a few weeks back that Nigeria loses about 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily to the very important thieves. This translates to about $40million loss daily. This is huge by any standard and Nigeria is probably one of the few countries that could have tolerated such hemorrhage for this long.
The matter is particularly pathetic in that the country cannot even meet the quota allotted it by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). In effect, the government’s ability to perform its responsibilities to the citizens is hampered due to the fact that money that should have accrued to it is going into private pockets. Indeed, Nigerians are today reeling under the weight of the cash crunch that has become the lot of the once prosperous nation as a result of the activities of the crude thieves: irregular power supply, bad roads, shambolic healthcare, unemployment, insecurity and a massive debt overhang, to name a few.
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So, whatever lawful measures the government takes to stop the bleeding is welcome. As a matter of fact, the shocking aspect has been the government’s inability to move against the criminals in the security agencies who have been colluding with civilians to defraud the country.
But, disbanding the anti-vandalism units of the civil defence corps is not enough. Since the shakeup is the product of allegations of collusion against some of the corps’ personnel, such personnel must be arrested and prosecuted.
Although the civil defence corps is supposed to, among other functions, protect critical assets and infrastructure like the oil and gas pipelines as Audi noted, crude theft cannot be perpetrated by NSCDC personnel alone. Other security agents including the army, navy and Air Force, etc. are equally complicit. So, the searchlights should be beamed on them as well if the country is genuinely interested in finding a lasting solution to the problem. Such officers and men cannot remain anonymous. They should be named, shamed and prosecuted.
Indeed, the officers and men arrested can also be of assistance in identifying the personalities behind such a huge fraud. The Federal Government should stop the habit of threatening to expose and prosecute those troubling the country’s peace. Keeping such persons’ names under wraps is not helpful to the country.
The appropriate lessons can only be taught and learnt when such criminals are flushed out of the service and they and their civilian accomplices, no matter how highly placed, are made to pay for their sins.