Nigerian Concord Newspaper
A motion on the need to probe crude oil theft and loss of revenue accrued from the oil and gas sector in the country has been named among the top 10 so far in the 10th House of Representatives.
The motion, which was sponsored by Chief Philip Agbese, the lawmaker representing Ado/ Okpokwu/ Ogbadibo Federal Constituency in July, was picked by National Assembly’s Order Paper magazine.
Recall that Agbese anchored the motion on recent reports of loss of trillions of naira from crude oil theft as well as loss of revenue from gas exploration in the land.
He noted that “According to reports, about 40 percent of crude oil loss is due to inaccuracies in measurement, and theft as metering errors continue to occur as a result of poor maintenance of metering facilities, thus resulting to lack of transparency in hydrocarbon accounting. “
The Green Chamber subsequently set up an ad-hoc committee to unravel those complicit in the alleged crime to bring them to justice.
Giving an insight into its selection process, the magazine said: “Between inauguration day and December 21st, 2023, the House considered about 500 motions, some of which produced resolutions which mandated investigations by standing or special ad-hoc committees.
“Consequently, some of the investigations undertaken during this period include job racketeering in public service, non-remittances of deductions from workers’ salaries for the National Housing Fund (NHF), abuse of tax waivers by both public and private organisations, and a host of others.”
On the choice of Agbese’s motion, it added: “The House in July set up an ad-hoc committee to investigate crude oil theft and loss of revenue from gas chaired by Rep. Kabiru Rurum (NNPP, Kano) with a mandate which included exposing any person or groups of persons behind the massive scale of oil heist in the country.
“Although this committee is one of those that met behind closed doors all through its sittings, it has managed to submit a report which is yet to be considered. Nigerians are eagerly waiting for action from the House.
“The move of the House followed a motion sponsored by Rep. Philip Agbese (APC, Benue) on the need to investigate crude oil theft and loss of revenue accrued from the oil and gas sector in Nigeria.”
Other motions selected include job racketeering by Hon. Oluwole Oke, student loans and hike in varsity fees by Hon. Terseer Ugbor, and arbitrary increase in petrol price by Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere.