No one who is well knowledgeable of the history and facts of fuel pipeline vandalism and pipeline fire disasters in Nigeria  will accept the Government bodies’ positions (especially NNPC which owns the pipelines and the Nigerian Police Force) on these preventable tragedies. Such finger pointing only takes away responsibility from successive governments that have sat over national affairs to put us in the state we are in today.

The institutions that are in charge of fuel supply management and national security owe specific duties to the communities situated around pipeline locations in particular to closely work with them and regularly educate them on the inherent dangers of tampering with pipelines or vandalized pipelines, in addition to other law enforcement measures to prevent or punish vandalism and fuel scavenging. Special handouts, on the order of the ‘You Should Know’ pamphlet, could be developed with a list of: hazards of living close to high pressure pipelines; past cases of pipeline fire tragedies; relevant laws; as well as police and fire department emergency hotlines specially set up for reporting pipeline vandalism, fuel theft and pipeline explosions. Such a handout would combine with massive nationwide multimedia campaign targeting residents around pipeline locations to partner with the government and to alert ordinary people to their civic responsibilities and constantly remind them of the various dangers posed by vandal activities and risks associated with living in close proximity to pipeline locations.