Illegal Oil Pipelines: President Buhari Dragged To Court By SERAP

A lawsuit has been filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) against President Muhammadu Buhari's administration over “the failure to probe the operations of illegal oil pipelines between 2001 and 2022, to name and prosecute those suspected to be involved, and to recover proceeds of crime.”

Per reports, the suit was filed by Chief Eric Dooh, the leader of the Goi Community in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State, and fifteen other concerned Nigerians.

The development comes on the heels of the discovery of at least 58 illegal oil pipelines used to steal the country’s oil wealth.

The theft is reportedly carried out via the illegal pipeline connected to the trunk line via an abandoned pipeline linked to a location in the high sea, where they load crude oil into vessels and sell it overseas.

In the suit marked ECW/CCJ/APP/53/22, the plaintiffs request  “an order directing and compelling the Buhari government to immediately probe the reports of operations of illegal pipelines and oil theft, name and prosecute suspected perpetrators.”

Additionally, they want “an order directing and compelling the Buhari government to fully recover any proceeds of crime, and to respect, protect, and fulfil the human rights of the people of Niger Delta that have continued to suffer the effects of oil theft by non-state actors.”

“The Buhari government is failing to uphold its international legal obligations to ensure that the country’s oil wealth is used solely for the benefit of Nigerians and that the wealth does not end up in private pockets”, the plaintiffs state in the suit.

A date for the hearing of the suit is yet to be fixed.