Warredi Enisuoh, Director of Tantita Security Services, has provided some insight into why security forces destroy the majority of vessels found stealing Nigerian crude oil.
Enisuoh, a guest on Channels Television’s breakfast show, The Morning Brief, on Thursday, said the decision to destroy the warships is due to various circumstances.
“No one is going to be pleased with the destruction of evidence, but one of the issues we always encounter is that ships are not small assets.” When they are captured, the owners attempt to flee the country.
“Now you only have the evidence and no one to hold accountable. The proof contains oil; the oil will not stay within the metal for long because it is sitting in one location and polluting the environment; this is a major issue.
“This is couple with the fact that investigations and the legal process will take quite a while and as you know, oil won’t just sit there forever and guarding it is expensive,” Enisuoh said in an interview.
Tantita, a private security firm engaged by the Federal Government to secure important oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta, is controlled by Government Ekpemupolo, a former Niger Delta agitator.
In recent months, the business has arrested a number of high-profile crude oil thieves in the Niger Delta.
When these vessels transporting stolen crude oil are apprehended, security personnel typically burn them on fire, which many have denounced as the destruction of evidence that could have been used to prosecute the offenders.
The Tantita director, however, stated that the amount of destruction of seized vessels has decreased, and that the legal approach is now more widely accepted.
“The court approach is now being taken and it is yielding results, so let’s see how it goes,” he said.
Enisuoh further stated that the policy for retaining such evidence should be examined so that the organization holding the evidence is not overburdened.
Crude oil theft has remained one of the key issues hurting the country’s economy because it diminishes the country’s oil supplies, cutting off its main source of revenue.
Despite efforts by the Federal Government to establish committees on crude oil theft and management, the problem persists and drains the country’s resources.
