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Tag: PENGASSAN

  • PENGASSAN calls for more advocacy from unions

    PENGASSAN calls for more advocacy from unions

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has called on other sister unions to intensify efforts on advocacy to protect the interest of workers.

    The union said when a resolution is passed, for example, through an agreement, unions would ensure that it is implemented.

    Speaking with The Nation, the General Secretary, PENGASSAN, Comrade Lumumba Okugbawa, said there was the need for harmonious relationship, mutual respect, understanding, open dialogue and tolerance among members.

    Given an instance, Ok ugbawa said the resolution passed at the just-concluded International Labour Conference (ILC) in Geneva on child labour needed urgent attention from the unions and government.

    He said perpetrators of child labour should  be dealt with.

    He stressed that ensuring children were educated would get them off the streets and guarantee their future.

    Okugbawa called on the Federal Government to prioritise the rights and protection of children from discrimination and intimidation.

    “People should respect the law of the land, and perpetrators should receive severe punishment to serve as a deterrent to others who may want to use underage children for child labour.

    “The National Assembly should also speedily pass the bill into law so that it will enable more actions against child labour.

    Read Also: PENGASSAN women move against stereotype

     “Then, there will be definite and better prospects for the children and the youth.

    “Government should also support parents or guardians and empower them to be gainfully employed to train their children,“ Okugbawa added.

    On the fluctuation in the price of petrol, he emphasised that fuel prices were primarily determined by crude oil prices and exchange rates, noting that since the exchange rate had remained relatively stable, lower crude prices should translate into lower pump prices. He said factors such as price of crude, rate of naira to dollar, determines the price of petrol.

    He, however, called on the marketers to be more transparent in the dealings.

    He said there was no justification for the high prices of petrol, blaming marketers for not being transparent.

    Okugbawa urged the industry regulator, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), to take drastic steps to halt the trend.

     “While we understand that the parameters imputed into the old PPPRA and now NMDPRA template has since changed because of some economic vagaries such as exchange rate fluctuation, vessel hiring cost and cost of diesel, among others, there is no sufficient justification for petrol sell for such highly inflated price, thereby subjecting the masses to further difficulties.

    “Even though there were some good marketers who tend to play by the rules, others have become overly overbearing,” he added.

  • PENGASSAN accuses fuel marketers of exploiting Nigerians, says petrol should sell for N700

    PENGASSAN accuses fuel marketers of exploiting Nigerians, says petrol should sell for N700

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has accused petroleum marketers of exploiting Nigerians through inflated fuel prices, insisting that Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) should currently be selling for between N700 and N750 per litre.

    Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Monday, PENGASSAN President, Comrade Festus Osifo, lamented that despite a significant drop in the price of crude oil, from around $80 per barrel to about $60, the pump price of petrol has not seen a corresponding reduction, remaining around N900 per litre.

    Osifo attributed the unjustifiable pricing to the failure of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to carry out its oversight duties effectively.

    He said, “NMDPRA should not watch the suppliers of products exploit the citizenry on the pretence of deregulation.

    “Also, comrades, we want to quickly talk about issues that are bothering the downstream. In the downstream today, in the Nigerian oil and gas industry, we have seen a trend. And the trend, if you could recall, at a time when the price per litre of petrol was sold around 900 Naira per litre, you realise that the international crude price was somewhere around $80 per barrel.

    “So we have been monitoring the trend. When the crude price reduced to around $60 per barrel, we did not see a commensurate reduction in the pump price. Because naturally, two things contribute principally to the price of PMS, for example, or the price of petroleum products.

    “One is the crude price, and the second is the exchange rate. So these are the two highest contributory factors. In fact, they contribute up to 80% of what the final price of PMS would be.

    “So what that means is that when the crude price reduces, the PMS price also reduces, most especially when the exchange rate has been relatively constant. So if crude price was somewhere around $80 per barrel, and we were having pump price at about 900 Naira per litre or thereabout, today, at a time, crude price hovers around $62 to $65 per barrel. But we only saw a marginal reduction in the pump price.

    “And if you do the calculation, you will realise that it is, I mean, Nigerians were exploited within that period. Because there is what we call PLAT. If you go online, you are going to see the PLAT cost per cubic metre of PMS.

    Read Also: Sterling Oil, PENGASSAN end feud after FG-backed truce

    “And when you convert that to litres, and you bring it down to our Naira, you are going to see that at a time when crude price was around $60 per barrel, we should be buying our PMS somewhere around “$700 to $750 per litre. That is how it should be when you do the calculation properly. Yes, we understand that people have invested in their business, and they want to make a profit.

    “It is the responsibility of businessmen to maximise profit. We don’t begrudge any business organisation that wants to maximise profit. That is why we have the regulators.” 

    He stressed that at the current international crude price levels, PMS should be retailing between N700 and N750, citing pricing models like the PLATTS index used globally to benchmark refined product costs.

    PENGASSAN urged NMDPRA to regularly publish pricing templates to ensure transparency and prevent exploitation under the guise of deregulation.

    “We don’t begrudge businesses for making profits. But it is the regulator’s responsibility to protect the people. If this exploitation continues, Nigerians will never benefit from global oil price drops—only bear the burden when prices rise,” Osifo added.

    He concluded with a rallying call for action and also expressed concern over the continued shutdown of the Port Harcourt Refinery, questioning the pace of the government’s refinery rehabilitation efforts.

  • PENGASSAN women move against stereotype

    PENGASSAN women move against stereotype

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) Women on Tuesday, moved against the stereotype against them in the industry.

    In her keynote address at the PENGASSAN Women Annual Convention (PWAC) 2025 in Abuja: the Business Services Executive Vice President of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Sophia Mbakwe, inspired women not to view themselves as second-class citizens.

    She urged them to be confident in tackling the stereotypes.

    She urged the women to be bold to take advantage of opportunities whenever they beckon.

    She, however, cautioned them to drop the bad attitudes that might hinder their progress.

    Mbakwe said, “You can have all the money, you can have a PhD, you can have the Master’s, but if you have a bad attitude, it will not take you to the board room.

    “You will keep going round the circles and wondering what has happened.  So from the pipeline, they can take you far and wide.

    “They can take you to the refinery, they can take you to the floor of the board room. And when you get to the floor of the board room, men and women are there, and these are people who have also gone through that journey.

    “They are not different from you, so never feel second class, always hold your head up and have that confidence. Be serious and be able to tackle that stereotype.

    “Be adventurous to take the bold step when doors open and opportunity knocks, even if it was not something you thought about, dare to take it and dare to embrace it.”

    She urged the women to desist from restricting themselves from doing what their job roles entail.

    She recalled how she worked in Frontier Exploration with her team, driving to Nassarawa and Maiduguri, sleeping inside the forest alongside the troops.

    She added, “So if I need to be in the field, I will be in the office, I will be in the field, I don’t restrict myself. If that is what the job role entails, I will do the job role, and that is why I said, refuse stereotypes for breakfast and be a great woman.”

    Read Also: PENGASSAN links petrol price drop to FX stability

    She advised them to be their authentic selves to advance instead of relying on the feminist agenda.

    She asked them to build themselves by reading motivational books that help them to grow from the pipeline to the boardroom.

    She said at the NNPC, the culture and structure have been reshaped to engender gender balance across units, businesses and departments.

    According to her, the restructuring has resulted in a woman heading the NNPCL Academy and other powerful women doing their things and standing tall in their areas.

    In her welcome remarks, the PENGASSAN Women Commission, National Chairperson Comrade Maryann Mbanaso said the theme, ” She Power the Future: Driving Industry Transformation, Innovation, and Leadership,” is more than a theme.

    She stated that currently women are not just leading change, noting that, “We are preparing the next generation to surpass us. We are building platforms for the girl-child in Science and Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), equipping her with tools, mentorship, access, and confidence to rise beyond barriers.”

  • Some oil firms increased salaries by 300% in two years — PENGASSAN

    Some oil firms increased salaries by 300% in two years — PENGASSAN

    Following the N70,000  minimum wage implementation, some oil and gas companies have increased their salaries by about 300%.

    The PENGASSAN President, Comrade Festus Osifo broke the news to reporters at the ongoing  Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) Women Annual Convention (PWAC 2025) in Abuja.

    Asked to give an update on the implementation of the minimum wage, he said the salaries adjustment in oil and gas industry has been tremendous.

    According to him: “And I would tell you, since this inflation came, since this inflation started, we have been doing Consequential Basic Adjustments (CBA) negotiations across board and there have been tremendous response. We’ve had, since 2023, we have some companies in PENGASSAN that have done close to 300% salary increment. 300%.”
    Besides, he revealed that another branch of the association was about to raise its salaries by 200%.

    Read Also: PENGASSAN links petrol price drop to FX stability

    “There are some branches, a lot of branches have done over 200%. And just last night, we got another branch as well, and we resolved issues around their CBA.”

    He commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the implementation of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).

    With the loan in place, some indigent students who would have dropped out of school can now have recourse to the fund, said Osifo, who is also the Trade Union Congress (TUC) President.

    He however advised the President to increase the fund to improve its accessibility.

    He also admonished the President to address the issues of lack of transparency being reported about the loan.

  • PENGASSAN links petrol price drop to FX stability

    PENGASSAN links petrol price drop to FX stability

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has credited the recent drop in petrol prices to improved foreign exchange stability, urging the federal government to maintain ongoing reforms that support competition and local refining.

    PENGASSAN General Secretary, Comrade Lumumba Okugbawa, told The Nation that the union is pleased with the recent drop in petrol prices, attributing the development to a combination of supportive economic policies and a boost in supply from both domestic and private refineries.

    “This is a welcome situation for us and a welcome relief for both consumers and independent marketers,” Okugbawa said.

    “Contrary to the usual trend of rising prices during periods of high demand, we are now seeing a decline due to increased supply and competition. This price war has been beneficial.”

    According to him, other contributing factors include the naira-for-crude exchange model, rising price competition, and the gradual resumption of operations at the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Dangote refineries.

    He urged the government to sustain the current trajectory, stating, “We hope that the government will sustain this because it will have broader economic benefits.”

    Okugbawa further explained that the observed price movements reflect natural market dynamics. He stressed that a liberalised market ensures energy security while enabling open participation under clear regulations.

    However, he warned that persistent oil theft and pipeline vandalism could undermine these gains if not urgently addressed.

    “The twin problems of oil theft and pipeline vandalism are not new to Nigeria,” he said.

    Read Also: Court stops PENGASSAN from blocking firm’s offshore operations

    “Indeed, like in a handful of other crude oil-producing nations worldwide, the multi-decade economic menace is almost as old as the global economy itself.

    “Crude oil theft and losses through pipeline vandalism pose serious threats not only to oil and gas exploration and exploitation in the country but also have huge negative consequences on the country’s economic growth, business prospects, and profit earnings by oil companies.”

    He concluded with a warning, “Unless Nigeria ends crude oil theft and assets’ vandalism, the country’s economy will continue to wobble, at least in the short to medium term.”

    PENGASSAN’s position adds weight to recent discussions around fuel price stability and the role of strategic government reforms in shaping the downstream sector.

  • Court stops PENGASSAN from blocking firm’s offshore operations

    Court stops PENGASSAN from blocking firm’s offshore operations

    The National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) has restrained the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) from blocking the offshore oil platform operations of Spie Services Nigeria Ltd.

    Justice Nelson Ogbuanya of the Owerri Division made the order on March 25, 2025, while ruling on a Motion on Notice by Spie Services.

    The claimant/applicant sought “An order of Interlocutory Injunction restraining the defendant/respondent either by itself or by its members, affiliates, agents, privies, associates, servants and or any person howsoever acting for or on behalf of the defendant from proceeding or embarking on any industrial action or other acts of interfering, disturbing, disrupting, stopping and or shutting down the claimant’s daily operations and maintenance of the said AKPO FPSO oil and gas industry installation pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.”

    Spie Services sued the defendant over its threat to shut down its operation and maintenance of the AKPO FPSO facility.

    PENGASSAN, in a February 16 letter, issued a 72-hour strike ultimatum to the company, threatening to shut down its operations for its alleged failure to allow workers in the facility to be unionised.

    Justice Ogbuanya held: “From the record, I find that the claimant has demonstrated that its legal right in the subsisting contract and business operation at the AKPO FSPO facility is under threat by the defendant’s continued threat of industrial action and actual blockade of access to the facility.

    “This overt threat and apprehension by the claimant/applicant has been heightened in the face of ‘Exhibit A and B’, confirming the official directive of the defendant union and follow-up action, which if not restrained, would overreach the contractual rights of the claimant/applicant in the said AKPO FSPO facility, while parties are still litigating their dispute in court.

    “I find also, that the line of opposition by the defendant/respondent borders on the issue as to whether the defendant union has the right to unionise the workers operating in the facility under the purview of the defendant union, which also forms the fulcrum of the substantive dispute between the parties herein.

    “I cannot at this interlocutory stage take any step to preempt such an issue in dispute, as the interlocutory stage is not an arena to pry into the substantive dispute of the parties. I so hold.

    Being aware and so guided by the extant adjudicatory principle in that regard, I have considered this application solely on the basis of the lone issue as to – Whether the claimant/applicant has made out a good case to be granted an interlocutory injunction to restrain the defendant as prayed?

    “While going through the claimant/applicant’s averments and exhibits juxtaposing with the learned counsel’s submissions on elements of the principles guiding the granting of the interlocutory injunction, I noted that the learned counsel for the claimant/applicant had also smartly kept his submissions within the circumference of an interlocutory application under consideration at this interlocutory stage.

    Read Also: PENGASSAN bemoans Obasanjo over minimum wage comments 

    “In Adeleke v. Lawal (supra) @ P.31 paras. D-E, the Supreme Court held that ‘The purpose of an application for interlocutory injunction is to keep the parties in an action in status quo, in which they were before the judgment or act complained of’.

    “The apex Court @P. 30, paras. G-H, explained the object and rationale for granting an interlocutory injunction, thus: ‘An interlocutory injunction otherwise called preliminary or temporary injunction is issued before or during trial to prevent an irreparable injury from occurring before the court has a chance to decide the case. This type of injunction will be issued only after the defendant is confirmed to have had notice and an opportunity to be heard’.

    “On the whole, in line with the jurisdictional mandate of this court, as set out in S.254C(1)(C) of the extant Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, on matters ‘relating to or connected with the grant of any order restraining any person or body from taking part in any strike, lock-out or any industrial action, or any conduct in contemplation or in furtherance of a strike, lock-out, or any industrial action and matters connected therewith or related thereto’, I am satisfied that the claimant/applicant has made out a good case deserving judicial intervention and protection by way of order of interlocutory injunction.

    “In the circumstance, the application succeeds and the reliefs are granted as prayed.

    “Accordingly, an order of interlocutory injunction is hereby granted restraining the defendant/respondent either by itself or by its members, affiliates, agents, privies, associates, servants and or any person howsoever acting for or on behalf of the defendant from proceeding or embarking on any industrial action or other acts of interfering, disturbing, disrupting, stopping and or shutting down the claimant’s daily operations and maintenance of the said AKPO FPSO oil and gas industry installation pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit. I so hold and order.

    “Ruling is entered accordingly. I make no order as to cost.”

  • PENGASSAN threatens strike over 10,699 Indian expatriates

    PENGASSAN threatens strike over 10,699 Indian expatriates

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) yesterday threatened to embark on a nationwide strike should the Federal Government fail to remove the 10,699 Indian expatriates working with Sterling Oil Exploration & Energy Production Company Limited (SEEPCO) in 15 locations in the oil and gas industry in the country.

    Speaking with reporters in Abuja, its President, Comrade Festus Osifo said the quota allocated to the firm was in violation of section 32 of the Nigerian Content Development Board (NCDMB) Act.

    He said the Ministry of Interior was in complicity with other figures in government that granted the undue expatriate quota to the company to take over the scarce employment opportunities in Nigeria.

    The president however vowed to shutdown the firm plants should the government refuse to act accordingly.

    He said: “We will engage all stakeholders. But at the end of the engagement the government should act if not those plants will be shut down. We will declare a nationwide strike if nothing is done. By the time we withdraw our members the upstream will be grounded.”

    Read Also; ​TIMELINE of Wike-Fubara fight, Rivers political crisis since 2023

    Asked to reveal the timeline for the industrial action, Osifo however noted that since there are no Nigerians working in the jetties, manning strategic positions, the association has communicated to its members in the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) who play critical roles in lifting operations.

    He added that “as we speak today, their operations are already under lock and key. They cannot lift.”

    He said since PENGASSAN members handle 90 per cent of upstream operations, it can easily ground activities in the industry with an industrial action.

    Earlier, he said the press conference was called as a continuation of the struggle that the association started last week regarding the firm.

    He said PENGASSAN has observed consistently that over time that the firm has been bringing in all manner of people to work in Nigeria in contravention of the laws and in violation of regulations.

    Continuing, he said: “So it is based on this that we brought the issues before the National Executive Council of PENGASSAN sometime in January and we resolved that we are going to do everything humanly possible to ensure that sterling, popularly referred to as SEEPCO, complies with our laws, complies with the regulations.

    “Because all we’ve said is that if other companies, the IOCs, the indigenous producers, they are all complying with our laws, they are all complying with our regulations, Sterling cannot be an exception.

    “Sterling cannot be bigger than Nigeria. Sterling management cannot be bigger than Nigerians. As we have highlighted last week, and we strongly believe in this, we know that that is exactly what is happening.

    “We have said last week that as of today, we have over 10,000 Indians that are working in sterling and majority of these people, they are doing middle and low level jobs.

    “These are jobs that Nigerians should do. These are jobs that today we have Nigerians littering the streets. These are the jobs that they should be doing.”

  • PENGASSAN bemoans Obasanjo over minimum wage comments 

    PENGASSAN bemoans Obasanjo over minimum wage comments 

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) on Tuesday condemned former President Olusegun Obasanjo for describing the present minimum wage as a living wage.

    Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, the association’s President Comrade Festus Osifo wondered why Obasanjo who was in the saddle for eight years without the review of the minimum wage would have the rectitude to bemoan the present situation.

    According to him, while the former President was in power, Nigeria was relieved of debt yet he could not enforce the Minimum Wage.

    Osifo said on the other hand, the present administration that is grappling with debt servicing has been able to review the minimum wage.

    His words: “So first, former president Obasanjo talked about the fact that the last minimum wage should have been a living wage, that it is not a living wage that we negotiated.

    “We looked at the person, I mean, Obasanjo is telling us about a living wage. But President Obasanjo was the president in Nigeria between 1999 and the year 2007. 

    “Let’s even leave the first one.Within this period, what was the Nigeria minimum wage? Did we have a living wage within this period? “

    Comparing the situations, Osifo said:

    “The answer clearly is a no. In 1999, the minimum wage was N3,500 . In 2000, the minimum wage became 5,500 naira.

    “For seven years, there was no review of the minimum wage. For seven years. “There was no review of the minimum wage.President Obasanjo handed over to Yar’Adua a minimum wage of N5,500. As of then, the exchange rate was between $120 and about 140 naira to a dollar.

    “So by the time you convert it, you are going to see that it’s just somewhere just above 40 dollars. So that was the minimum wage President Obasanjo handed over to President Yar’Adua. And for seven years, there was no review.”

    Recalling that Obasanjo’s government was free of debt servicing burden, he noted that Nigeria had more fund to address minimum wage palava in his tenure.

    He said the ex-president refused to review the minimum wage even while dollar was only N45.

    He said, “And remember that within this period, our debt was forgiven.We were not servicing our debt. What that means is that we have more money to have addressed some of these issues.

    Read Also: PENGASSAN pickets Sterling Oil

    “But they were never done.Our debt servicing was nearly 0%. We were not spending our revenue to service debt. “But at that time, our minimum wage was about 45 dollars or thereabout.And it wasn’t reviewed for seven years.”

    The PENGASSAN boss who admitted that the association demanded for a minimum wage, the several years that lapsed without a living wage, they started from a living wage.

    Osifo said, “So when you fast track that to today, comrades, yes, we went and we started demanding for a living wage. But because over the years, living wage has not been implemented in Nigeria.Over the years. 

    “But we started from living wage. But when the argument came, we now have to narrow down to inflation.When we narrow down to inflation, then if you now look at it, in a particular press conference, I have said that look at when the last minimum wage of 30,000 naira was passed in 2019. 

    “Take the inflation of April 2019, inflation figure as released by MBS. Apply it to the minimum wage of 30,000, you will get a value.

    “That value, you will look at the inflation in the last five years, you will keep applying it until you get to April 2024. You are going to get somewhere around 74,000 naira. When you apply the inflation cumulatively every year, that is where you are going to get to.

    “So, that was the argument that government brought forth. But also remember, that negotiation that we are doing, we are doing it in an era where 90% of Nigerian revenue was being used to serve these debts. 90%.So, I am doing a comparison. 0% to serve these debts. Where Obasanjo left. What was our minimum wage? How is that minimum wage then? Better than the minimum wage that we have today. I leave you to do that exploration further.”

    Earlier, he said most people were quick to judge others even over things they could not achieve while in office.

    He said, “First, comrades, what we have observed particularly is that people will be in government. You know, when they are not out of government, they will now become self-righteous.

    “When they are not out of government, they will now become saints. When they are out of government, they will now start pontificating.

    “For example, we have seen state governors, that they were governors in a particular state for eight years. After being governors for eight years, when they will not leave the office, you will now see them granting press interviews in channels, in AIT, in Arise, and advising the state governors on what they did not do. 

    “I listened to a particular state governor that was telling his people that, ah, no, that what this state should do should be much more, they should focus on agriculture, that they should identify two or three crops, two or three cash crops, that they should grow, so that they will start exporting and making money. 

    “I looked at the person, I said, ah, but you were governor in this state for eight years. How come you did not implement those lofty ideas?” 

  • PENGASSAN threatens nationwide strike over 10,699 Indian expatriates

    PENGASSAN threatens nationwide strike over 10,699 Indian expatriates

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) on Tuesday threatened to embark on a nationwide strike should the federal government fail to remove the 10,699 Indian expatriates working with Sterling Oil Exploration & Energy Production Company Limited 

    (SEEPCO) in 15 locations in the oil and gas industry.

    Addressing a press conference in Abuja, the association’s President, Comrade Festus Osifo said the quota allocated to the firm was in violation of section 32 of the Nigerian Content Development Board (NCDMB) Act.

    He said the Ministry of Interior was in complicity with other figures in government that granted the undue expatriate quota to the company to take over the scarce employment opportunities in Nigeria. 

    The President however vowed to shutdown the firm plants should the government refuse to act accordingly.

    He said, “We will engage all stakeholders. But at the end of the engagement the government should act if not those plants will be shutdown. We will declare a nationwide strike if nothing is done. By the time we withdraw our members the upstream will be grounded.”

    Asked to reveal the timeline for the industrial action, Osifo however noted that since there are no Nigerians working in the jetties, manning strategic positions, the association has communicated to its members in the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) who play critical roles in lifting operations.

    He added that “as we speak today, their operations are already under lock and key. They cannot lift.”

    He said since PENGASSAN members handle 90 per cent of upstream operations, it can easily ground activities in the industry with an industrial action.

    Read Also: PENGASSAN pickets Sterling Oil

    Earlier he said the press conference was called as a continuation of the struggle that the association started last week regarding the firm.

    He said PENGASSAN has observed consistently that over time that the firm has been bringing in all manner of people to work in Nigeria in contravention of the laws and in violation of regulations.

    Continuing, he said, “So it is based on this that we brought the issues before the National Executive Council of PENGASSAN sometime in January and we resolved that we are going to do everything humanly possible to ensure that sterling, popularly referred to as SEEPCO, complies with our laws, complies with the regulations.

    “Because all we’ve said is that if other companies, the IOCs, the indigenous producers, they are all complying with our laws, they are all complying with our regulations, Sterling cannot be an exception.

    “Sterling cannot be bigger than Nigeria.Sterling management cannot be bigger than Nigerians. As we have highlighted last week, and we strongly believe in this, we know that that is exactly what is happening. 

    “We have said last week that as of today, we have over 10,000 Indians that are working in sterling and majority of these people, they are doing middle and low level jobs.

    “These are jobs that Nigerians should do. These are jobs that today we have Nigerians littering the streets. These are the jobs that they should be doing.” 

  • PENGASSAN pickets Sterling Oil

    PENGASSAN pickets Sterling Oil

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) yesterday staged a protest the headquarters of Sterling Oil Exploration on Victoria Island, Lagos, over alleged anti-labour practices and expatriate abuse by the company.

    The protest, which commenced as early as 6 a.m., saw union leaders and workers chanting labour solidarity songs and carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Reinstate Sacked Nigerian Workers,” “Stop Collective Bargaining Agreement Victimisation,” and “Stop CBA Violation.”

    The demonstrators accused the company of systemic discrimination against skilled Nigerian workers in favour of Indian expatriates.

    President of PENGASSAN, Festus Osifo while addressing journalists and union members, condemned the management of Sterling Oil for abusing the expatriate quota system, which, he claimed, had led to the monopolisation of jobs by Indian nationals at the expense of qualified Nigerians.

    “Our members in Sterling have been pushed to the background; they should tell us how many Nigerians are working in Sterling today that are managers. They should tell us how many Nigerians today are working in Sterling that are general managers. However, when you go to other international oil and gas companies, you have Nigerians even as managing directors, deputy managing directors, executive general managers, general managers, and so on,” Osifo said.

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    He further alleged that Sterling Oil employed over 10,000 expatriates, all of Indian origin, in Nigeria, including roles that could be filled by Nigerians.

    “In Sterling Global, we have expatriates as gate men, vulcanisers; we have expatriates making tea; we have expatriates that are Nigerian cooks, cooking for Nigerians to eat in Nigeria,” Osifo added.

    The union leader stressed that the protest was only the beginning of a series of actions that would continue if an agreement was not reached.

    He warned that failure to address the concerns could lead to a nationwide strike, potentially paralysing the oil and gas industry.

    “If this is not corrected, this has the propensity of leading to a national strike, where we will call out our members across the nook and cranny of the oil and gas industry in Nigeria. Also, remember, the operations of the entire oil and gas industry in Nigeria are manned by our members, and we will call them out; the entire operations will be grounded. So, government must act, and the time to act is now,”

    Among other grievances, the union demanded the reinstatement of sacked members and called for an immediate end to Sterling Oil’s alleged anti-labour policies.

    In response, Sterling Oil, in a communique signed by its management, announced that all employees had been directed to work from home pending the resolution of the dispute.

    The company assured that the matter would be addressed soon.