…says it Intolerable, and no more excuses for inaction – WTO Chief
The Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has bemoaned the lack of effective actions at curtailing crude oil theft in the country.
She said there are enough technological innovations to track crude oil theft and bring those behind the act to justice in Nigeria.
The former Nigerian finance minister said those responsible for stopping the “intolerable” action of crude oil theft no longer have excuses.
She spoke before a room filled with lawyers at the Eko Hotel & Suites in Lagos during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) on Sunday.
In her keynote address titled, ‘A Social Contract For Nigeria’s Future’, 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 said oil theft has hampered the strengthening of the foreign reserves.
“There is so much technology available now to track such theft and there must be no more excuses for inaction.”
The event with the theme, ‘Pressing Forward; A National Posture to Rebuilding Nigeria’, featured stellar personalities at home and abroad.
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.
Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun; Senate President Godswill Akpabio and his counterpart in the lower chamber Tajudeen Abbas were also represented at the event.
Asks Politicians To Stop Weaponising Insecurity
She urged politicians in Nigeria to stop weaponising insecurity against their opposition in office.
“We cannot have socio-economic development without security. We certainly cannot have security without development,” the WTO chief said.
“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.”