Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) has issued a two-week ultimatum, starting from June 12, to the Federal Government to compel the International Oil Companies (IOCs), to pay outstanding bill to dockworkers for over a year.
The union, in a statement by its President-General and Secretary General, Prince Adewale Adeyanju and Felix Akingboye, asked the Ministry of Transportation to, within the next 14 days, address the issue or the nation’s ports would be shut down
The statement read in part: “We want to use this medium to intimate you and the Federal Government of the non-payment of the stevedoring wages to dockworkers by the International Oil Companies (IOCs) operating in Nigeria. We are aware that on June 1, 2018, the NPA appointment stevedoring contractors to provide stevedoring contractors to provide stevedoring services at various off-shore jetties and on-shore locations to the International Oil Services and other operators. It will be necessary to inform you that NPA had held several meetings with these operators to grant access to the government appointed stevedoring contractors, process their invoices and effect payment, but unfortunately, the operators have refused to comply with the NPA directive after one year that the stevedoring contractors were appointed.
“We commend the managing director of Nigerian Port Authority for the NPA management has made to compel the IOCs to engage the services of appointed stevedoring and registered dockworkers in their stevedores and registered dockworkers in their stevedoring operators.
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“In fact, at stakeholders’meeting held on February 28, 2018, organised by the NPA at the Victoria Crown Hotel, Victoria Island, to sensitise stakeholders i.e IOCs, Jetty Owners and Terminal Owners, the NPA management appointed stevedores and registered dockworkers are empowered by law to solely handle discharged and loading operations at the ports, jetties and oil platforms.”
Adeyanju said the position of the operators on to NPA directive is worrisome and very surprising because the same operators had processed and paid the former stevedoring contractors since 2010 through a foremost terminal operator.
“So, why are they refusing to cooperate with the newly appointed stevedoring contractors since the modus operandi remains the same?
“The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) has been monitoring the chain of events on this matter since last one year, and noted that the implication of the operators defiant attitude amongst others is untimely death of some dockworkers while awaiting the payment of their wages, because they could not meeting their family obligations like payment of house rent, children school fees and hospital bills, to mention but few. We can no longer continue to watch our members die prematurely because of defiant attitude of the IOCs.
“Consequently, we are constrained to give the Ministry of Transportation that superintends the appointment of stevedores two weeks (14 days) to prevail on the management of the International Oil Companies (IOCs) to pay all outstanding bills to our members, failure of which we will compelled to withdraw our services and shut down operations in all the nations sea ports,” he said.
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