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Tonye Cole, an All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for governor of Rivers State in 2023, has said that individuals guilty of oil theft in the Niger Delta are not concealing.
In an interview with Channels Television, the former executive director of Sahara Energy who made the assertion asserted that oil thieves must be taken into account while trying to put a stop to oil bunkering.
Cole said;
"You must invite them in. They have to take part in the conversation. They are not obscured. Some of them may have grown through the streams, and with others, you may notice a change in their way of existence.
"You see someone who has altered their lifestyle; you see the houses, the automobiles, and the money that is spent, so you know. In the society in which we grew up, if you start flashing money and no one knows where it comes from, you would be shunned by everyone.
"Today, things have changed; no longer does it matter where your money comes from. Therefore, it is not a secret; inside the community, word spreads quickly that this is what is happening."
Asari Dokubo accused the military of stealing oil, and Tonye added that this was a serious matter that needed to be handled. He said that although Dokubo's assertion may have infuriated the military, they would not dispute that certain bad apples help and abet unlawful bunkering.
