t the last count,
10 people have died in the latest pipeline inferno in Ogbeke, Agbani, Enugu
State. The grisly happening is once more a reminder that as a society we are yet
to get it right in terms of managing various sensitive aspects of our modern
existence. The Ogbeke incident forcefully brings to the fore our never-ending
cycle of tragedies.
The fire started at the kilometre 190.5 of the petroleum
pipelines carrying refined petroleum products from Port Harcourt to Enugu.The
location falls precisely at Ogbeke, Agbani, close to Enugu. Media reports on the
incident had it that the villagers were caught in the inferno when they trooped
out to take advantage of broken petroleum piepline, having found themselves with
gushing fuel from the vessel. Seven people reportedly died on the spot while
three out of those rushed to the nearby National Orthopaedic Hospital (NOH)
Enugu died later of severe burns.
The circumstances surrounding the Agbani incident and the
many others before it clearly indicate that something is fundamentally wrong
with the nation’s pipeline management. It raises several issues that need to be
properly addressed.
First, the recurring deadly leakages point to the fact that
the integrity of pipelines in Nigeria is suspect. Ordinarily, it should take
much more than the crude tools of some villagers to easily and regularly
vandalise well built, standard pipelines. The pipelines on the ground now have
been allowed to get weak and corroded. Indeed, most of the existing pipelines
are accidents waiting to happen.
Again, the Agbani incident has demonstrated once more how
inefficient the monitoring arm of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)
is. In Agbani as in other past cases, officials of the NNPC were never aware of
leaks before the villagers moved to take opportunities of them, leading always
to fires. Even when the appropriate NNPC officials seem to know of the leakages,
they are always slow to respond. In this latest incident, officials of the
corporation at the nearby Emene Depot reportedly got to know about the leak when
the fire was already on at the site.
This situation leaves much to be desired. The inefficiency
displayed in the monitoring of oil pipelines over the years has become too
costly for the country to continue to bear. In fact it might well be that the
inefficiency of the officials concerned emboldens saboteurs and other
impoverished villagers who see in the situation a sudden means to earn a
living.Unfortunately,they die on a regular basis trying to exploit the crude
offers from the leaking vandalized pipes.
It has become necessary for the NNPC and its agencies to take
the job of guarding and securing pipelines more seriously. Side by side with
this is the need for enlightening the locals on basic safety issues associated
with pipelines. The locals need to know the implications of tampering with
pipelines and basic precautions in the event of a leak. They also need to know
the channels and means of getting across to relevant officials fast in the event
of a leak.
This may be a tall order though, considering that questions
arising after these fires point clearly to the fact that there is a disconnect
between the oil pipeline owners and locals of areas hosting the vast network of
pipelines. This manifests by way of confusion, fear and delays in approaching
pipeline owners during leaks.
Unless urgent actions are taken to address the situation, we
fear a situation where the locals might, out of a sense of alienation, take up
arms against the owners and managers of the pipelines. It behoves the NNPC and
any other owners of pipelines therefore, to device concrete means of actively
involving host communities in the safeguarding of pipelines. A situation where
the locals are given the status of stakeholders will undoubtedly enhance their
level of commitment to the safety of pipelines.
Government and NNPC owe Nigerians the responsibility of
securing their pipelines and by extension the lives of people living around
these networks. The frequent leaks and the attendant deaths, pollution, anguish
and environmental degradation are evils that Nigeria can ill afford.
It is therefore imperative for the NNPC to adopt urgent and
lasting measures to reinforce or replace corroded pipelines. It also has to
ensure that its pipeline laying practices conform to acceptable global standards
to curb the ease with which they are reportedly pried open.
For now in the Ogbeke incident, the corporation should come
to the aid of the Agbani victims by first picking their medical bills and then
rehabilitating them. This should be a part of a comprehensive package to reduce
the pains and damage caused by the fire incident. Any resort to an argument that
NNPC owes the victims no responsibility because they brought the calamity upon
themselves cannot hold. There can be no defence for individuals whose acts of
willful damage to public facilities result in tragedy. It is difficult to posit
however, that all victims of the frequent pipeline disasters in the country are
guilty of pipeline vandalisation
The statement credited to some NNPC officials to the effect
that the villagers were economic saboteurs who deserve punishment rather than
compensation is regrettable. Such statement is not only insensitive to the
extreme, it constitutes a reprehensible attempt to confuse issues. Such attitude
cannot help NNPC.Nor is it respectful of the lives of Nigerians lost or badly
damaged in such tragedies as occurred at Ogbeke, Agbani. Of course, such an
uncaring disposition can only worsen the relationship between NNPC or any other
pipeline owners and the communities that host the pipelines.
We also repeat our earlier call after the inferno at Isiukwuato, Abia State
that the oil companies that own the pipelines should initiate enlightenment and
poverty reduction programmes for host communities. This twin programme will go a
long way to rein in the temptation to tamper with petroleum pipelines. It goes
without saying that only poverty of the most excruciating kind is capable of
getting right-thinking humans to risk the danger apparent in contact with
leaking, highly inflammable pipelines just to scoop fuel to hawk.
