The candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 governorship election in Rivers State, Tonye Cole, has suggested ways to end oil bunkering that has become a menace in the country.
According to him, oil thieves must be brought to the table to be part of the discussion, only then can there be a way forward, OsunDailyNG reports.
Cole, who was a former Executive Director of Sahara Energy, said oil thieves in the Niger Delta are not hidden.
Cole’s suggestion follows an allegation made by a former Niger Delta agitator, Asari Dokubo some days ago.
Dokubo had claimed that the military is responsible for most oil theft in the country, an assertion that has raised so many concerns and criticisms.
Cole, while speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, said Dokubo’s allegation of oil theft against the military is a big issue that must be addressed because the military might have been angered by Dokubo’s claim.
He further noted that the military would however not deny that there are some bad eggs that aid illegal bunkering.
The APC chieftain said “You have to bring them in. They must be part of the discussion. They are not hidden. Some of them may have grown through the creeks, some of them you see their lifestyles change.
“You see someone whose lifestyle has changed, you see the houses have changed, you see the cars have changed, you see the money that is spent, so you know. This is a society where when we were growing up if you start showing money and no one knows where it’s coming from, everyone will ostracise you from the society.
“Today it has changed; nobody cares where your money is coming from again. So it is not hidden, people know almost immediately within the community that this is what is going on.”
Cole observed that if the country does not address the issue of illegal bunkering, a state of emergency in the oil and gas sector might be the only solution.
