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Tag: NUPENG

  • Petrol crisis to ease as govt, marketers settle

    Petrol crisis to ease as govt, marketers settle

    FUEL pumps may start flowing again, with senators facilitating an agreement between the Federal Government and oil marketers. Tankers are to immediately start lifting fuel in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Warri and Calabar depots.

    The Senate yesterday mandated its joint committee on Petroleum Resources (upstream and downstream) to meet with stakeholders, including the Federal Government, to resolve the lingering fuel scarcity, which has crippled the economy.

    Banks have cut work hours and mobile firms are threatening to shut down. Transport fares are hitting the roof and airlines are cancelling flights.

    The resolutions were read by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream), Senator Magnus Abe.

    Part of the resolutions is the immediate call-off of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association (PNGASSAN) strike.

    The resolution said that the strike was called off after the intervention of the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Joseph Dawha.

    The resolution mandated the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to give an undertaking to the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and Depot Managers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMA) that the work of the committee being headed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Petroleum Products Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) will be concluded.

    The committee is to verify the N200 billion MOMAN is claim that the government owes its members.

    The resolution said if the committee “concludes its verifications of the outstanding claims before the end of the life of this administration, it would be reflected in the handover notes to the new president.

    “If it is not concluded, then, the fact that such a committee was set up and is working, will be reflected in the handover notes and a copy of the letter conveying the existence of this committee will be sent to MOMAN and DAPPMA and, also, a copy will be sent to us in this committee.”

    It added “On the basis of that agreement, MOMAN will offer whatever cooperation that is needed to enable lifting of petroleum products to begin nationwide within six hours.

    “MOMAN has also agreed to give a similar undertaking to National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) to pay existing transport costs as has been determined by them.

    “MOMAN will give a written undertaking to NARTO and a copy will also be sent to this committee.

    “NARTO and its affiliates nationwide will commence lifting of petroleum products from available fuel depots within the next six hours.

    “DAPPMA is to instruct all their depots that have products to open those depots up to lifting of petroleum products within the next six hours.”

    Abe said that they also agreed with the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) that “any depot that has product and fails to lift in the next six hours should have their licences revoked immediately.”

    He went on: “We have also agreed that NNPC should direct its staff nationwide to work 24 hours, including Saturdays and Sundays, for the next two weeks until normalcy returns to the sector.

    “We have also agreed to reach out to the Lagos State Government to facilitate this agreement and reach some kind of arrangement with tanker drivers to allow access to the relevant depots to facilitate lifting of products.”

    Abe had in his opening remarks said that the country is in a national emergency due to scarcity of petroleum products,

    He noted that impression was that “no government is in place but there is government in place as the Nigerian Constitution does not envisage any vacuum.

    He said: “As we speak, the airlines are shutting down, telecommunications are shutting down, banks are sending text messages that they are shutting down. We are in a situation of national emergency. I don’t want to talk about what the ordinary man in the streets is going through. I don’t want to talk about what private businesses are going through. We must resolve to solve the problem so that Nigeria can work again.”

    The Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum (Upstream), Senator Emmanuel Paulker, described the situation “as a national disaster”.

    He insisted that the meeting should work to find lasting solution in the interest of the country.

    Mrs Okonjo-Iweala, who briefed the committee extensively, said she was at a loss about what is happening.

    She said: “I’m not really sure about what is going on. I also want to understand what is going on. I deeply sympathise with Nigerians. It is deeply regrettable that Nigerians are put in this situation. There is deep anger. The government has done creditably.”

    The Minister wondered why diesel that is not regulated is also scarce and not available for Nigerians to buy.

    She said: “Diesel is not regulated, it is not subsidised. Why is diesel not available? Diesel is a product that should be available for everybody to buy. I want to understand why diesel is also not available.”

    The Minister said that she had a pattern of payment to marketers which the government had not deviated from.

    She added that the pattern this year is even better than what the government had in 2014.

    She insisted that payment to marketers is a rolling obligation and “there is no time that government has reduced the payment to zero”.

    The behavior of marketers, she said, “is inexplicable”.

    She said the last payment the government made to the marketers was N154 billion two weeks ago.

    The Minister said the marketers quickly came up with another claim of N200 billion.

    She said the claim was queried only for the government to find out that N159 billion out of the N200 billion was foreign exchange differential and not for actual product.

    “I told them it is better we get the whole thing verified where the CBN will participate and be in charge of the verification. We agreed to set up a committee but even before we conducted the verification they have started withdrawing and shutting down their facilities.

    “Before I came in, N1.3 trillion was supposedly owed the marketers but there was no shutdown. With N200 billion, the entire country is being shut down.

    “Government is a continuum; why are they saying that the debt must be brought to zero? Is government no longer a continuum?”

    Mrs Okonjo-Iweala said she did not want to leave government in four day time and be summoned to explain why she signed N159 billon cheque.

    “There is a deliberate attempt to sabotage the economy and bring it to a halt so that it will look as if government did not do any thing,” she said.

    Insisting that the whole thing is in bad faith, Mrs Okonjo-Iweala said that Nigerians should ask marketers why diesel that is not regulated is not available.

    She said: “The government cares about Nigerians and the President is deeply concerned. The payment is a rolling payment and there has never been a time when everything is paid.”

    She said the marketers had been paid and there is no reason for them to withhold products except it is deliberate or sabotage.

    MOMAN spokesman Obafemi Olawore blamed it all on lack of funds to import products.

    Olawore noted that at the peak of the challenges facing the association, banks refused to extend credit line to them because members owe banks.

    He said they could not import products on their own.

    He said of N154 billion paid their members, they are owed transporters.

    Olawore also said that because they cannot import on their own, their members can only discharge the products they received from the NNPC.

    The DPR confirmed the availability of products in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Warri and Calabar.

    It said Lagos alone has 425m liters of PMS.

    NNPC GMD, Dawha said there was sufficient product in the country.

    He said: “Even before the election, we made sure that there is sufficient product so that the election will not be disrupted.

    “Even now, we know that there is transition, we make sure there is sufficient product.

    “The marketers are not importing, there is also no lifting for obvious reasons. We also experienced small strike by NNPC workers which has also complicated the matter. We are hoping that they will call off the strike today.

     

  • Lifting of oil won’t stop fuel scarcity, says NUPENG

    . NLC seek blacklisting of guilty firms

    The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas workers (NUPENG) has  warned that lifting of fuel as agreed after yesterday’s meeting of oil industry chiefs, marketers and government officials at the National Assembly is not likely to end the crippling fuel scarcity.

    The solution according to the union is to end the massive importation.

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) also yesterday urged the federal government to blacklist the firms that contributed to the scarcity which it said had caused Nigerians untold hardship.

    In Lagos, Policemen were on Ikorodu Road in Lagos, arresting black market sellers of petrol on the road side.

    No fewer than a dozen of boys selling petrol at the road side were arrested. Others fled.

    NUPENG President Igwe Achese told reporters in Lagos that ‘’The scarcity will continue until the government addresses certain issues. We cannot continue to depend on importation.

    “The NNPC which operates the refineries is the highest importer of petroleum. Why?

    “Contrary to the rumour that we are on strike, we are saying it now that we are not on strike. But we are faced with some challenges, one of which is the problem of space, especially, in Lagos. Downstream has moved to Lagos. Most of our tankers load from Apapa, but the new directive from the Lagos State Government has made it difficult for us to operate,’’ Achese said.

    Achese described petroleum subsidy as a fraud, adding that subsidy should be removed totally. He said the money on subsidy should be used to build more refineries, repair the existing ones and address many infrastructural problems.

    ‘’Even though the economy is growing, we are still suffering. The in-coming government has a lot to address,” he said.

    NLC President Ayuba Wabba said in a statement entitled: “Fuel Scarcity: Let Government Act Now” that the government should carry out a quick investigation on the matter which should identify the officers behind the current situation and hand them over to the incoming administration to further investigate and they are made to face the law.

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has watched with utter disgust and dismay how business and commercial activities in the country have been brought literally to a halt as a result of the activities of a mindless and cruel cabal that has taken absolute grip of the petroleum import business.

    “Clearly, the objective of the cabal in the current impasse is to arm-twist the Federal Government to part with billions of dollars, which it had not earned, in the name of fuel subsidy payments.

    “More curious, however, is the fact that the Federal Government has allowed this cabal to continue to hold the entire country to ransom thereby escalating the regime of impunity and unimaginable corruption which had taken complete hold of the operations of our petroleum sector causing the country to lose billions of dollars over the years.

    “As Mr. President has had cause to remind Nigerians in the weeks following the March 28, 2015 Presidential election, that he was still in charge of running the country, the NLC hereby calls on him to take firm and decisive action by calling to order all those in the petroleum sector that have one way or the other brought this crisis upon the nation.

    The outgoing administration should blacklist all those private sector companies involved in the massive blackmail of Nigerians and ensure that their licenses are revoked as a punitive measure to serve as deterrent to operators that it doesn’t pay to blackmail and hold a nation to ransom.

    “The ugly experience of Nigerians in the last four or so weeks regarding this fuel scarcity raises a few questions. One; what happened to our old habit of maintaining “a strategic national reserve”?

    “Two, is the action of the players in the petroleum sector a subtle plot to force the hands of the incoming administration to forcibly deregulate the petroleum sector, and compound the hardship of Nigerians through the increase in the prices of petroleum products?

    “As organised labour, we maintain our position that government has absolutely no excuse not to ensure that our four refineries with combined capacity to refine 450 thousand barrels per day to function and operate to full capacity.

    “We refuse to accept that as a nation so dependent on the petroleum sector, that Nigeria is incapable of building and effectively maintaining refineries to refine all the petroleum products it needs internally and more, so that we are able to satisfy our internal consumption needs and export finished products with value addiction along the chain, to earn additional foreign exchange for the nation.

    Wabba called for “the implementation of the Faruk Lawan’s House of Representatives Report on the Petroleum Sector; Implementation of the Nuhu Ribadu Committee Report, Implementation of the Senate Committee on Finance on the Alleged Unremitted US$49.8 billion Oil Revenue by the NNPC and Review of the Audit Report by PricewaterHouseCooper (PwC)

    He maintained that “We in the NLC are hopeful that the incoming administration, with the experience of the President-elect in the petroleum industry, will help usher in an era of patriotic and nationalist orientation, and will tighten all the areas of leakages and fraudulent practices which had deprived our country of billions of dollars in earnings into the federation account.

    We are ready for questions on handover notes, says Sambo From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

    Vice-President Namadi Sambo has expressed the readiness of members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to clarify any issue in the handover notes.

    He made the remark on Monday while presenting copies of the handover notes to the Ahmed Joda led All Progressives Congress (APC) Transition committee at the State House, Abuja.

    He said that the report comprises the activities of the Federal Government between 2011 and 2015.

    He said: “The handover notes of the Federal Government of Nigeria of this administration between 2011 and 2015 have been properly articulated and printed.”

    “The Permanent Secretaries of each ministry have signed each page of this report to authenticate it and it is our pleasure to present it to you and pray that it will guide you, guide the incoming administration towards the achievement of positive objectives, development and progress of Nigeria.”

    “And I want to add that all of us are always available, after this report between now and May 29, anytime you need to meet with us. We are ready to come and sit and clarify.”

    “All the (Ministries, Departments and Agencies) MDAs will also be ready to meet with you, give you any additional or clarification that you would want to have on this report that we are presenting.” He added

    He thanked the members of the two transition committees for their support and contributions.

    Speaking at the ceremony, Joda said that his committee would examine the report before final submission to the incoming administration.

    He said: “It is my honour and my privilege to receive this comprehensive set of the report from the government transition committee which was chaired by the vice-president.”

    “It appears that nothing has been left out. It is now our challenge to give careful study and examination of what is contained in these volumes.”

    He said that his committee is duty bound to ensure continuity in government, governance, for the general progress of the nation.

     

     

  • Fuel scarcity: FG, oil marketers resolve conflicts

    Fuel scarcity: FG, oil marketers resolve conflicts

    … –Products lifting to begin within six hours

    The Senate on Monday recorded a major breakthrough in its efforts to resolve the lingering fuel scarcity in parts of the country

    The upper chamber brokered an agreement between the Federal Government and oil marketers to ensure immediate lifting of available petroleum products by marketers in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Warri and Calabar depots.

    The Senate had mandated its joint committee on Petroleum Resources (upstream and downstream) to meet with stakeholders including the federal government to find immediate solution to the lingering fuel scarcity in the country.

    The resolutions were read by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream) Senator Magnus Abe.

    Part of the resolutions reached at the well attended meeting included the immediate call off of the strike by the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association (PNGASSAN).

    The resolution said the suspension of the strike was made possible due to the intervention of the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Joseph Dawha.

    The resolution also mandated the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to give an undertaking to the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and Depot Owners Association (DAPPMA) that the work of the committee being headed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Petroleum Products Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) will be concluded.

    The committee is charged with the responsibility of verifying the N200 billion MOMAN claimed the government owes its members.

    The resolution said if the committee “concludes its verifications of the outstanding claims before the end of the life of this administration, it would be reflected in the handover notes to the new President. “

    “If it is not concluded, then, the fact that such a committee was set up and is working, will be reflected in the handover notes and a copy of the letter, conveying the existence of this committee will be sent to MOMAN and DAPPMA and also, a copy will be sent to us in this committee.”

    It added that “On the basis of that agreement, MOMAN will offer whatever cooperation that is needed to enable lifting of petroleum products to begin nationwide within six hours.

    “MOMAN has also agreed to give a similar undertaking to National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) to pay existing transport costs as has been determined by them.

    “MOMAN will give a written undertaking to NARTO and a copy will also be sent to this committee.

    “NARTO and its affiliates nationwide will commence lifting of petroleum products from available fuel depots within the next six hours.”

     

  • NUPENG, PENGASSAN suspend strike

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s chapter of Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) suspended their strike on Monday.

    The corporation’s Group Public Affairs Division said in a text message to our correspondent that the workers pledged to provide 24 hours service in order to restore normalcy in fuel distribution.

    The message reads: “NNPC Chapter of NUPENG and PENGASSAN suspend strike. Pledge 24 hours service to restore normalcy to fuel distribution.”

     

  • Fuel crisis deepens as NUPENG, PENGASSAN strike continues

    Fuel crisis deepens as NUPENG, PENGASSAN strike continues

    The crisis in the oil sector seems to be deepening as workers of the Nigeria Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), under the aegis of the Petroleum and National Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, and the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, early this week, shut down their operations.

    The unions directed NPDC employees, a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to shutdown indefinitely their locations and all oil production facilities nationwide in a bid to force the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke and the Federal Government to reverse the transfer of operatorship of OMLs 42, 40 and 30.

    The assets were previously operated by Shell.

    The unions are aggrieved that the sale of the assets did not follow due process and would affect the fortunes of the NPDC and its workers.

    Mr. Emeka Offor’s Elcrest Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited, a joint venture company of Eland Oil & Gas Plc, was awarded the operatorship of OML 40, while Mr. Ernest Ezedialu Obiejesi’s NECONDE is the operator of OML 42.

    A source from the union, who pleaded anonymity, said the strike is not national, adding that it is only an arm of the NNPC in Benin.

    He said the workers are agitated   that they were kept in the dark by the management in the entire process, and are of the opinion that management’s decision would not only threaten their jobs, but will jeopardise the future of the industry.

    He said the strike had resulted from a breakdown in communication between the management of the company and the unions.

    Speaking on the development, the President, Trade Union Congress, TUC, Comrade Bobboi Kaigama, calls on  the Federal Government to immediately halt and reverse the last minutes transfers of the operatorship of OML 42, OML 40 and OML 30,  which are being arbitrarily handed over to Neconde Energy Limited, Eland/Elcrest and Shore Line respectively.

    ”We demand immediate reinstatement of the operatorship rights of the Nigeria Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), the NNPC subsidiary that has been successfully operating the assets to avert the brewing industrial crisis in NNPC in view of the impact it will have on the ongoing transition process,” Kaigama said.

  • Fuel scarcity: NUPENG alleges closure of depots to tanker drivers

    Fuel scarcity: NUPENG alleges closure of depots to tanker drivers

    The National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) on Monday said the prevailing fuel scarcity may worsen if depot owners shut their depots to tanker drivers.

    Mr. Tokunbo Korodo, the South-West Chairman of the union told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that no tanker driver had loaded petroleum products as at 1.30 p.m on Monday.

    “What I was told was that the independent depot owners may have shut their depots to tanker drivers because of the over N200 billion owed them by the Federal Government.

    “The other information I got was that the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketing Association (DAPPMA) is meeting with the President-elect on the subsidy issue.

    “I think the outcome of that meeting may determine if DAPPMA will reopen the depots for loading or import more into the country.

    “But as at 1.30 p.m. on Monday none of the union members has loaded fuel from DAPPMA depots in Apapa,” Korodo said.

    He said that the relocation of tankers from highways and the inability to load fuel at the depots were responsible for the free-flow of traffic in Apapa axis.

    Korodo said that DAPPMA and major marketers were aggrieved over the yet to be settled subsidy claims.

    Efforts to obtain comment from Mr. Adewole Olufemi, Secretary General of DAPPMA on the closure of depots failed.

    Korodo added that the recent directive by the Lagos State Government for tanker drivers to relocate from the highways within 48 hours had not yielded any result.

    According to him, tanker drivers have vacated the highways but other heavy duty vehicles, especially container drivers have taken over.

    “The government cannot chase tanker drivers away for other heavy duty vehicles to occupy the space.

    “Lagosians should know that tankers have not been the problem of gridlock in Lagos.

    “We occupied the road because we were told to pick fuel only at Apapa,” he said.

    He urged the government to settle importers for calm to return to the sector.

    NAN reports that the petroleum products’ marketers said on May 14 they would no longer import products except the Federal Government settle their subsidy claims.

    The marketers said that the last meeting they had with the Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in Abuja ended in a deadlock.

    The government had put the subsidy debt at N131 billion while the marketers insisted on N200 billion.

  • Tanker drivers can’t leave Lagos roads now, says NUPENG

    Tanker drivers can’t leave Lagos roads now, says NUPENG

    Will tanker drivers comply with the Lagos State Government’s directive to quit Eko, Liverpool and Coconut bridges by today?

    They may not according to the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) Southwest Chairman Tokunbo Korodo, who argues that they cannot be blamed for constituting traffic nuisance.

    The drivers, he said, were constrained to park on those roads because only three of the 50 depots in Lagos were dispersing petrol.

    The depots are Capital Oil and Gas, Ibeto Oil and Gas and Integrated Oil and Gas tanks.

    This development, Korode said, compelled hundreds of trucks to head for the three depots, adding that this is the key reason for the unprecedented traffic jam that has locked down Lagos in recent days.

    Commissioner for Transportation Kayode Opeifa, on Wednesday chaired a stakeholders’ meeting where the government directed the trucks to vacate the bridges.

    “No tanker should be seen on Eko, Liverpool and Coconut among other bridges. By Thursday, the tanker owners should make one lane available for motorists to use pending the expiration of the ultimatum for enforcement to begin,” he said.

    At the meeting were NUPENG, Petroleum Tankers Drivers (PID), National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) and Independent Petroleum Markers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN).

    With a biting petrol shortage, Lagos residents are also experiencing a lock-jam on most roads.

    Korodo said the gridlock could ease if trucks queuing for oil can load and leave Lagos this weekend.

    But such scenario is not likely, according to observers.

    Korodo suggested that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) should decentralise loading of petroleum products to ease the pressure on Lagos.

    According to him, that is the only way Lagos residents will get a respite from the gridlock, which has pushed transport fares and cost of foodstuff up.

    Meanwhile, many residents, including women and children resorted to trekking to get to their schools, businesses and offices.

    Residents of Mushin, Ojuelegba, Surulere and Costain-Apapa areas who found it impossible to commute to Lagos Island because of a total lock-down at Costain Roundabout trekked to their destinations.

    Some motorists abandoned their vehicles on roads after finding it impossible to cope with the traffic.

    A civil servant, Mr Innocent Edewor, who lives in Iyana-Ipaja and works in Iganmu said the fuel scarcity is worse than previous ones, adding: “The situation is telling on my meagre income”.

    Edewor said: “It is never easy coping with Lagos traffic but the last one week has been hellish.

    “I cannot even drop my children in school because first the fuel is not available and second the roads are heavily congested by heavy vehicles. I have, therefore, decided to let my children stay at home, until the situation gets better. I pay as much as N350 from Iyana-Ipaja to this place and most of the time I have to trek long distances. If I have my way, this is the time to leave Lagos.’’.

    Also, traders on Lagos Island are lamenting poor sales because of their inability to get to the island.

    “Nobody is coming to patronise us at Balogun Market. Which road will they take to come to the market?’’ a shop owner, Mrs Olubunmi Erinle, asked.

    “Our leaders should be proactive to prevent situations like this because everyone is suffering. The hardship is too much,’’ she said.

  • NUPENG explains gridlock

    NUPENG explains gridlock

    The National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) yesterday appealed to Lagosians to bear with it over the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway gridlock. NUPENG’s South-West Chairman, Tokunbo Korodo told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that its members were not responsible for the problem.

    “Most of the tankers responsible for the traffic jam came from the north to load petroleum products in Lagos.

     “They were programmed to get the products here (Lagos), but when they got here most of the depots owned by Independent marketers refused to load the tankers.

    “The Independent marketers are aggrieved they were not carried along with the major marketers on the recent subsidy payment by the Federal Government.

    “Now that the tanker drivers are here, it is difficult to return to the north without the product because it will not make economic sense.

    “For them to go back to their stations (empty) is economic loss; so they will continue to wait till they get the products.

    “This is coupled with an early morning accident along Ikorodu Road.

    “The union is working with officials of Lagos State traffic unit to manage the situation,” he said.

    He said the gridlock would ease immediately majority of the tankers load and leave. Korodo said the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) should decentralize the loading of petroleum products to reduce traffic gridlock on Lagos roads.

    He said only three out of over 50 depots currently had petroleum products, adding that this was mainly responsible for the traffic jam.

    Korodo said the three depots were Capital Oil and Gas Tank Farm, Ibeto Oil and Gas Tank Farm and Integrated Oil and Gas Tank Farm, all in the Apapa.

  • Fuel subsidy: NUPENG threatens strike

    Fuel subsidy: NUPENG threatens strike

    MEMBERS of National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) yesterday put the Federal Government on notice on their readiness to embark on strike if their employers being owed subsidy failed to pay April salaries.

    NUPENG National Chairman Tokunbo Korodo gave the warning while reacting to the lingering fuel scarcity.

    Korodo, who is the Lagos State Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), wondered why President Goodluck Jonathan administration would be failing in its obligations to the oil marketers, who have already imported the products.

    He added that should the government fail to pay the marketers latest today, as promised by the Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the union would be left with no choice than to down tools.

  • NUPENG threatens strike over failure to pass PIB

    THE  National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) has threatened to go on strike if the National Assembly (NASS) fails to pass the Petroleum Industrial Bill (PIB) into law.

    President of the union, Comrade Igwe Achese, made this known  during a briefing tagged: “What is the future of oil and gas sector?”

    According to him, we will not use the word ‘strike’ to scare Nigerians, but we will withdraw our services across the country if the Seventh Assembly fails to pass the PIB.

    Igwe said the bill must be passed by the NASS to ensure transparency in the oil and gas business.

    “We are not joking with this issue and I hope strongly that the  assembly will do the needful,” he said.

    The NUPENG chief also lamented the vandalism of pipelines, calling on the government to provide adequate protection for them.

    “For refineries in Kaduna to function properly, there is the need to secure them and others throughout the country,” he added.

    Part of their demands include the rehabilitation of refineries to reduce massive importation of petroleum products, tackling the problem of outsourcing of workers in the oil and gas sector, road rehabilitation, security, inauguration of the PPRA board, among others.

    The labour leader said the divestment of oil must be stopped and that the government must bring in new policies to sustain the sector.

    On the scarcity of fuel in Abuja, Achese emphasised that NUPENG was not on strike and despite the insecurity in the country, they still ensured the distribution of the product across the country.

    “The question of no fuel should be directed to the NNPC and others because we are committed to our jobs,” he said.