A lecturer in the Department of Sociology, University of Port Harcourt, Dr. Sofiri Joab Peterside on Monday claimed that some highly placed Nigerians were behind the illegal crude oil bunkering operations in the Niger Delta region.
He made the claim while delivering a key note address at the 8th annual national environmental congress of the Environmental Rights Action/ Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN), in Port Harcourt. The congress was themed, “Extractives and Energy Transition: A Roadmap to Zero-Carbon Development.”
According to Peterside, “Oil bunkering has become an industry of its own in Nigeria. There is executive oil theft going on in the Niger Delta region. Those who are involved in this illegal act are mostly those who are in it just to ensure that they remain among the highly placed in the country.
“You may ask, why do our security men stationed at the Cawthorne channel turn the blind eye while ships come in to illegally load crude oil. You may also ask, who owns these ships.”
Delivering his keynote address titled, “The Age of Fossil Fuels and the Emerging Quest for Sustainable Energy Model of Development,” Peterside observed that illegal crude oil bunkering in the Niger Delta has claimed the lives of many youths.
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