Worried by the incident that claimed the lives of over 250 in Abia state, the Senate, yesterday, mandated its committees on Police Affairs and Downstream Petroleum to investigate the remote and immediate cause of the incident.
The lawmakers also urged the federal government through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to send relief materials to victims of the fire incident, reportedly caused by an oil pipeline in Osisioma Local Government Area of Abia state.
The resolutions of the lawmakers followed a motion of urgent national importance, by former Governor of Abia state, Senator Theodore Orji (Abia Central).
Leading debate on the motion, the lawmaker said that Osisoma Local Government Area in Abia state is his constituency, which has a fuel depot where Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) pumps oil to, from and distribute to Abia and beyond.
“But unfortunately on October 12, 2018, there was a disaster in two communities in that local government, Umu-IMO and Umu-Duru communities of Osisioma LGA where two pipelines passed through.
“The point is that there are two pipelines passing through the communities and one of them is an old pipeline that has been abandoned long ago, but NNPC was no longer using that pipeline and they gave it to the villagers to maintain and to keep vigil over it.
“Then there is another pipeline that carries fuel and other petroleum products. That one was under the responsibility of NNPC. It was fixed by NNPC and the pipeline has been leaking fuel intermittently which the villagers and the community leaders observed and reported to the depot manager and nothing has happened since then.
“When I visited the area, the local government chairman told me that he has reported to the depot manager of the NNPC and yet nothing was done to stop the leakage.
“So, until this particular day when the leakage became intense thus tempted the villagers to scoop fuel to sell in order to make ends meet.
“There were policemen guiding the area. Rather than prevent the scooping, they watched and extort money from the villagers as they scooped fuel which led to an ignition of fire on the fuel and there was mayhem leading to the death of over 250 as at today.
“The situation we found in those communities is agony, hardship wailing and grief”.
Fielding questions from newsmen, Senator Orji lamented that NNPC has as at the time of filling this report had not shown any empathy to the victims of the havoc despite a prior notice to the management by the affected villagers and communities.
The lawmaker, however, demanded compensation from the corporation for the victims of the inferno.
Comment here