The story published on November 29, 2019 by the Nigerian Voice, an online newspaper platform on the above caption, ‘refers. The story titled ‘DPR is aiding smuggling of petroleum at border areas’ must have been drawn from the comments made by the Comptroller General of Customs, Hameed Ali, when he appeared before the House of Representative Committee on Customs. It must be a deliberate plot to create a non-existing feud between the two agencies of government determined to end smuggling of PMS and other associated products. According to the Custom boss, “Majority of the retail outlets located at the border are culprits of fuel diversion but certainly NOT DPR at all, far from it. They get approval to discharge the products legitimately in the day, but at night, they siphon it out. This has been going on for a long time. Now, we restricted supply to 20 km before the border. Let’s monitor the outflow. We want to know where the outflow is coming from. But we suspect these filling stations at the border are the conduit to siphon petrol and sell double the price to neighbouring countries. Petrol is sold at N395/ litres, but they buy from Nigeria at less than N145/litre. With this border closure, it has jumped to N600/litre. Meaning, we are the ones subsidizing petrol for neighbouring countries. So, marketers are making a kill. It’s attractive to take petrol out and sell there.”
This report was a deliberate attempt to sabotage and bring to public odium the good work and current robust plan already in place by the current management of the agency under the leadership of Mr. Ahmad Rufai Shakur to end smuggling of PMS. The Director has shown purposeful leadership and brilliance since assumption of office with several positive policies and programmes aimed at bringing sanity to the system. He has also strived in line with DPR vision, policies and programmes to meet the revenue target given to the agency by the federal government few months ago. There is no gain-saying the fact that the story is an attempt to give the dog a bad name in order to hang it.
Recently, the agency has since aligned on FGN’s directive to drive grandiose initiative for economic prosperity as far oil and gas is concerned and such as this; ‘the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, weekend, vowed to play a key role in delivering the Federal Government’s strategic mandate for the Nigerian petroleum industry over the next four years.
Speaking during a strategic management retreat in Abuja, Acting Director of the DPR, Mr. Ahmad Shakur, noted that on assumption of office, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, had on behalf of the Federal Government, given each agencies on the petroleum ministry specific deliverables to be implemented, which would also be measured against key parameters.
He identified the ministerial deliverables as: eradication of smuggling of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, across Nigerian borders; complete gas flare commercialisation programme; increase crude oil production to three million barrels; reduce the cost of oil extraction; promote the passage of the petroleum industry bill; increase domestic refining capacity and create jobs for Nigerian youths.
He noted that the DPR would focus on the mandate that concerns it, adding that its strategy would involve all field officers, as well as all staff of the DPR. He emphasised that the objective of the retreat was to cascade down the ministerial mandate to all staff of the DPR, too enable it provide the necessary regulatory oversight for the oil and gas sector and achieve the next level agenda of Government.
Shakur explained that the strategic management retreat would further assist the DPR to sustain the tempo of ongoing reforms in the agency, which was geared towards aligning with its vision of being a world class regulatory agency.
He tasked the top management of the agency to ensure total alignment of their divisions and zones to the ministerial deliverables as it has been embedded into the DPR’s corporate strategy.
The Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, who was the Special Guest of Honor commended DPR for the retreat initiative. He stated that there must be a shared vision by all players in the industry for progress to be achieved. Sylva emphasised that the ministerial deliverables must cascade down to all staff as it was the duty of everyone to ensure the success of the mandate.
He explained that the deliverables was a product of the ministerial retreat he had earlier in the year and reiterated that the DPR being the core of the oil and gas sector of Nigeria must ensure the successful delivery of the mandate. The honorable minister enjoined the department to swing into action as he has dubbed year 2020 the year to deliver and begin the actualisation of the oil and gas industry roadmap.
The minister enjoined the department to swing into action as he has dubbed year 2020 the year to deliver and begin the actualisation of the oil and gas industry roadmap. He has also strived in line with DPR vision, policies and programmes to meet the revenue target given to the agency by the federal government few months ago. There is no gain-saying the fact that the story is an attempt to give the dog a bad name in order to hang it.
DPR as a premier regulator of oil and gas industry in Nigeria has come a long way and it is now a household name known for purposefulness and integrity. Its operations since inception of this management have gone a long way in sustaining the vision and mission of DPR. Its regulatory functions of adequate monitory, supervision has seen sanity returned in the industry especially in the downstream. Erring filling stations smuggling or short changing the nation across the country have been sanctioned accordingly. PMS customers are getting values for their money because the DPR has refused to allow the old culture to be sustained. The organisation should be commended for a well a job well done and not vilified as Nigerian voice has unjustly done.
The online publication should have checked its facts properly and also seek the position of DPR before rushing to the press. One is aware that one of the hallmarks of journalism is accuracy in news reporting, but the industry today has been flooded with quacks. It is therefore important that the Nigerian Union of Journalist should commence immediate wielding of the big sticks against quacks in the industry.
Finally, DPR has a responsive management that listens to genuine and constructive complaints. In fact, its doors are wide opened to answer fundamental questions that hinges on its operations.
Mohammed Dauda Eibo, a Media and Communications Specialist lives in Kaduna
