By Milcah Tanimu

he Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is advocating for the creation of a specialized court to deal with cases of oil theft and vandalism in Nigeria. Mr. Michael Uzokwe, Chief of Staff to EFCC Chairman Mr. Ola Olukoyede, argued during an Abuja investigative hearing that delays in the regular court system are hindering the prosecution of these crimes. He stressed that a dedicated court could speed up proceedings and bolster efforts against crude oil theft and other financial crimes.

In related developments, Rep. Alhassan Ado-Doguwa, Chairman of the Special Committee on Crude Oil Theft, proposed forming a sub-committee to assess the effectiveness of the Molecular Power System (MPS) oil theft detection system. The need for this sub-committee arose from the system’s lack of results despite a multi-million-dollar contract and a $5 million retainer fee.

Rep. Sada Soli, representing Ado-Doguwa, questioned the ongoing use of the costly MPS system due to its poor performance and noted resistance from influential lawyers benefiting from the retainership. He also raised concerns about the Attorney-General’s directive for Nigerian lawyers’ retainerships to be paid in dollars.