Tinubu Petitioned To Probe Oil Theft Allegation Against Naval Chief
- More pressure has been mounted on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to stage a probe against the chief of naval staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla
- Ogalla is currently pinned with allegations ranging from oil theft to contract split
- The Concerned Nigerian Group recently petitioned President Tinubu through the minister of defence to commence the probe immediately
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Legit.ng journalist Segun Adeyemi has over 9 years of experience covering political events, civil societies, courts, and metro
FCT, Abuja - A group of concerned Nigerians has submitted a petition to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, making serious accusations of crude oil theft, contract splitting, procurement fraud, and corruption against Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, the Chief of Naval Staff.
The petition was endorsed by prominent Human Rights Activists and lawyers, including Barrister Pelumi Olajengbesi, Esq, Comrade Deji Adeyanju, Comrade Mohammed Suleiman SK, Barrister Aisha Waliki, Esq, and Comrade Ogunwoye Samson.
Source: Twitter
These co-petitioners called for an immediate investigation into the alleged widespread corrupt activities of Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla.
Ogalla is facing allegations of permitting the release of numerous impounded oil tankers involved in the transportation of stolen crude oil along the Nigerian coastline, allegedly in exchange for multimillion-dollar kickbacks.
Initial findings suggest that since being appointed by the President on June 19, 2023, Ogalla may have received bribes exceeding $170 million within the last six months.
The group, which presented the petition to President Tinubu via the Ministry of State for Defense led by Hon. Bello Matawalle, conveyed significant worry regarding the serious accusations.
They said:
“At a time when the country is grappling with significant revenue losses due to crude oil theft, it is distressing to discover that the Chief of Naval Staff, whose primary responsibility is to safeguard Nigeria's waterways against oil theft and other forms of criminality, is allegedly involved in collusion with the perpetrators of these heinous crimes against the Nigerian state”.
Adeyanju accuses navy of aiding high-profile oil bunkering
Comrade Adeyanju, one of the co-petitioners who spoke to Legit.ng said the petition became necessary due to the current economic situation of Nigeria and that the country cannot risk losing resources when it is needed most.
He said:
"The basis of the petition to the security agencies is to ensure that an investigation is called into the allegations of oil bunkering and contract splitting by the chief of naval staff and to ensure that justice is done in the matter."
"And if he is found culpable, he should be relieved of his duties because we all already know what the country is going through economically, and we also know that that there's no how high-level oil bunkering will be done without the connivance of the navy...and that is what makes allegations against the chief of naval staff extremely believable."
Tinubu to military generals: "Why I will not tolerate your failure"
Meanwhile, President Tinubu has said that the failure of the military chiefs to end insecurity in the country will sabotage his economic plan.
Tinubu, while addressing the service chiefs at the presidential villa, said if insecurity persists, it will affect his administration's $1 trillion economy target in a few years.
The president also warned against the accidental bombing of civilians as it happened in Kaduna recently.
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Source: Legit.ng
