The House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream) and the Special Committee on Crude Oil Theft have resolved to jointly introduce five bills to address key challenges affecting Nigeria’s oil industry.

The chairman of both committees, Alhassan Doguwa, disclosed this at a joint meeting held in the National Assembly, stating that the proposed bills were part of legislative intervention.

Mr Doguwa explained that the bills were tailored to support national efforts to secure oil and gas assets and curb crude oil theft.

According to him, one of the bills seeks to establish a national commission that will be empowered to prevent and prosecute pipeline vandalism and other oil sector-related crimes.

”The committees and indeed the entire House are deeply concerned about the increasing insecurity and criminal activities around oil-producing areas.

“This intervention is a legislative response intended to complement government efforts in protecting these critical national assets,” he said.

Mr Doguwa explained that the two committees, petroleum resources (Upstream) and the special committee on crude oil theft, share a similar jurisdictional focus, particularly on oil production and export.

”In my view, these two committees essentially deal with the same core issue: crude oil. While one focuses on the theft and security aspect, the other covers the drilling and export processes.

“That’s why we’ve decided to meet jointly and work together on these legislative proposals,” he said.

He revealed that one of the bills under the petroleum resources (upstream) committee was being championed by the speaker of the House.

Mr Doguwa explained that the bill sought to establish a commission to oversee the decommissioning of oil assets, an issue that has sparked concern among host communities and stakeholders in the industry.

”The decommissioning process is a major policy priority of the current administration, but there are gaps in oversight.

“That’s why the speaker and other leaders of the House have shown interest in backing legislation that provides statutory authority and a legal framework for a commission to manage this process, while ensuring that the interests of host communities are taken into account,” he added.

He further explained that each of the five bills under consideration would be sponsored by different members of the committees.

According to Mr Doguwa, they will collectively be presented as committee-driven legislation to reflect the collaborative effort and seriousness of the intervention.

”These bills will bear the names of different committee members, but they are not individual efforts.

“They represent our collective commitment to addressing the challenges in the sector and fulfilling the expectations of the leadership, government, and the Nigerian people,” he explained. 

(NAN)