The Joint Committee of the House of Representatives on Host Communities (HOSTCOM) and Public Petitions have kicked against ongoing calls for the “decentralisation” of the country’s pipeline surveillance contract.
The committees made this known on Wednesday at the end of a high-level joint retreat involving lawmakers and Niger Delta stakeholders in Owerri, Imo State, where participants resolved to shift the region’s focus from controversies surrounding pipeline contracts to a fresh legislative push for an increase in host community funding under the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, 2021.
The retreat, themed: “Strengthening Pipeline Surveillance Through Host Communities Partnership, Accountability and Sustainable Development Under the Petroleum Industry Act 2021,” ended with a vote of confidence on Tantita passed on Security Services Nigeria Limited.
They therefore urged the federal government and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, to grant the company a long-term contract extension.
The Joint Committee in resolutions signed at the end of deliberations on May 27, 2026, declared that Chapter 3 of the Petroleum Industry Act had already established a comprehensive framework for decentralised community participation in pipeline surveillance through the Host Communities Development Trust (HCDT), structure and the mandatory three per cent operating expenditure contribution by oil companies.
The retreat, therefore, rejected fresh demands for further decentralisation of the surveillance contract currently handled by Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited.
According to the lawmakers, the existing HOSTCOM provisions under Sections 234–258 of the PIA already guarantee legal and operational decentralisation for oil-producing communities across the Niger Delta.
Participants accused promoters of the agitation of pursuing “personal contract interests disguised as community advocacy.”
The resolutions stated: “All calls for further ‘decentralisation’ of the private security contract are hereby dismissed as baseless and anti-Niger Delta.”.
The Joint Committee subsequently passed a unanimous vote of confidence in the company and called for a long-term renewal of its surveillance contract to consolidate gains already recorded in the fight against crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism.
“Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, in partnership with NNPCL, has rendered demonstrably effective service in the protection of crude oil pipelines and the recovery of national crude oil production,”
The retreat also extended its endorsement to President Bola Tinubu, the NNPCL and the Office of the National Security Adviser, applauding what it described as their roles in restoring peace and protecting Nigeria’s economic lifeline.
The committees resolved to sponsor an amendment to the Petroleum Industry Act aimed at increasing the HOSTCOM statutory funding from three per cent to six per cent.
The proposed amendment, according to the lawmakers, is intended to strengthen the HOSTCOM framework and provide greater resources for infrastructure, youth empowerment, environmental remediation and sustainable development in host communities.
Adedayo Akinwale
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