The Director General of the World Trade Organisation, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has said there are enough technological innovations to track crude oil theft and bring those behind the act to justice in Nigeria.
This was disclosed by Okonjo-Iweala at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association held at the Eko Hotel & Suites in Lagos on Sunday, according to Channels News.
The event with the theme, ‘Pressing Forward; A National Posture to Rebuilding Nigeria’, featured stellar personalities at home and abroad.
The former Nigerian finance minister delivered a keynote address entitled, ‘A Social Contract For Nigeria’s Future’.
She asserted that there are no longer any excuses for those responsible for halting the “intolerable” theft of crude oil.
Okonjo-Iweala said, “A second aspect of security relates to the security of national assets. Nigerians have seen for years how organised crude oil theft on a massive scale seriously undermines the economic and financial health of the country.
“All Nigerians must agree that stealing of our national assets of any type is intolerable and must be stopped.”
She stated that oil theft has hindered efforts to strengthen the country’s foreign reserves.
“There is so much technology available now to track such theft and there must be no more excuses for inaction.”
Oil theft and pipe line vandalism have become a national issue.
In addition, the WTO DG emphasized that the country cannot achieve socio-economic development without security, and likewise, security cannot be attained without development.
She pointed out that some politicians think the best way to discredit their opponents is by instigating insecurity to make it appear that they are unable to govern, even if this results in loss of lives and property of innocent Nigerians.
“We cannot have socio-economic development without security. We certainly cannot have security without development.
“We all know that security has been weaponised in our country for political purposes by political actors, leading partly to the situation we have now.
“We have politicians who believe that the best way to make their opponents look bad is to instigate insecurity making it look like they can’t govern, regardless of whether this leads to loss of lives and property of innocent Nigerians. This has to stop,” the WTO chief said.
Former President of Ghana John Mahama and the President of the Court of Appeal of Nigeria, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, were physically at the event while President Bola Tinubu was represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima.
