The federal government has set up an Inter Ministerial Committee to oversee the recovered illegally refined petroleum products ( crude oil) in the Creeks of the Niger Delta Region.
The Committee comprised representatives of the Nigerian Army, Navy, Civil Defence Corps, Defense Headquarters and the Federal Ministry of Defence.
Others in the Committee are representatives of the Federal Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Environment, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation NNPC, Department of Petroleum Resources DPR and National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency.
Inaugurating the committee on Thursday in Abuja, the Solicitor General of the Federation, Malam Umar Etsu Mohammed said that the committee was put in place in line with government direction on security and economy for efficient management of illegally refined petroleum recovered from illegal operators in the Creek.
Among other things, the federal government charged the committee to detect, report, evacuate, assess and ensure transparent disposal of the product with due consideration to the environment.
The Solicitor General of the Federation announced that the Federal Ministry of Justice will coordinate the process and house the Secretariat of the committee.
‘’ It is also my hope that the proceeds from this exercise will be a source of additional revenue for the country’’
The Solicitor General of the Federation also said, ‘’the content of SOP is drawn from the provision of the Asset Tracing, Recovery and Management Regulations 2019’’