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PENGASSAN Begins 3-Day Warning Strike

Managing Director, Hajiya Inna Maryam Ciroma (right) congratulating the vice chairman of Maritime Workers Union. Rivers State Council, Comrade Godwin Dominic at the 2014 NIWA safety awareness campaign, at Port Harcourt NIWA Dockyard, Marine Base while General Manager, Corporate Affairs, NIWA, Mr Tayo Fadile (middle) watch. Photo: Nwiueh Donatus Ken
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the National Union of Petoleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) began a three-day warning strike today, over anti-labour practices in the oil and gas sector of the nation’s economy.
The anti-labour activities listed by the oil workers include unjust delay in the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, retardation of staff promotion in the Petroleum Technology Development Fund, non-standardisation of nomenclature and collective bargaining agreement of the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Agency in line with what obtains in other agencies in the oil and gas industry, refusal of the Management of Addax/Petrostuff Nigeria Limited and Chevron/Sudelletra to recall sacked staff, Petrobras management’s unprocedural release of staff and its refusal to renew expired Collective Agreement, the unjust termination of the appointment of the Port Harcourt Zonal Secretary and Treasurer of PENGASSAN and NUPENG respectively
Oil workers under the aegis of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria have concluded plans to shut down all oil and gas installations in the country due to the anti-labour activities of some employers in the sector.
The anti-labour activities listed by the oil workers include unjust delay in the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, retardation of staff promotion in the Petroleum Technology Development Fund, non-standardisation of nomenclature and collective bargaining agreement of the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Agency in line with what obtains in other agencies in the oil and gas industry, refusal of the Management of Addax/Petrostuff Nigeria Limited and Chevron/Sudelletra to recall sacked staff, Petrobras management’s unprocedural release of staff and its refusal to renew expired Collective Agreement, the unjust termination of the appointment of the Port Harcourt Zonal Secretary and Treasurer of PENGASSAN and NUPENG respectively.
Other issues are the perilous state of the nation’s strategic and industrial roads and highways, non-beneficial deductions of National Housing Fund from workers, un-abating measures of addressing pipeline vandalism and crude oil theft and divestments by International Oil Companies without clear guidelines to check the resultant arbitrary job losses, heightening insecurity of PENGASSAN members/families in the troubled parts of Northern Nigeria.
According to a statement issued by the PENGASSAN Secretariat on Sunday, plans are at the final stage with its sister union, the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, to mobilise members for a nationwide industrial action that will disrupt operations in the oil and gas sector until the Federal Government showed genuine intention to earnestly attend to and resolve the issues.
PENGASSAN noted that the 14-day ultimatum given by its National Executive Council meeting of October 30, 2014 to the Federal Government and other concerned employers’ and agencies and further ratified by the Joint NEC of both NUPENG and PENGASSAN on October 31, 2014, had since expired without any meaningful resolution or commitment from either the government or the concerned employers’ and agencies at resolving the issues.
The statement hinted that all levels of the Union have been fully sensitized and mobilised for the inevitable industrial actions that will affect every value chain in the upstream, midstream and downstream of the oil and gas industry.
The union explained that the purported termination of the appointment of its Port Harcourt Zonal Secretary, the Nupeng Zonal Treasurer was an ill-conceived act of victimization by their employers and which the NNPC, Federal Ministries of Petroleum Resources and Labour and Productivity, the Department of State Services, the Department of Petroleum Resources have advised the company’s management against, but remained unbending.
On crude oil theft and acts of vandalism, PENGASSAN alleged high level collaboration of the security agencies, politicians and highly placed Nigerians in the buccaneering racket of oil and gas installations and the resultant crude oil theft, adding that the ugly trend signifies a looming extinction of the oil and gas industry with attendant job losses.
This further endangers the national economy with the persistent drop in crude oil prices, the union said.
The association called on the Federal Government to mobilise contractors to site for immediate repair of all perilous roads leading to all oil and gas installations in the country, especially the Shaguolo/Alternative Road to the PPMC depot in Warri, Delta State; Eleme/Onne Road, in Rivers State; Apapa/Ijora/Wharf Road and Tin Can Island Road, both in Lagos State; and the Port Harcourt/Enugu Road.
The association described the deduction from workers’ salaries for the National Housing Fund as sheer exploitation and demanded that the deduction should be stopped forthwith, saying that it would be forced to resort to whatever necessary labour action it deems appropriate to protect its members from further exploitation of the non-beneficial policies that has served no member’s interest in the sector.
The national body of the apex union in the oil and gas industry have also mobilised its members to various Internally Displaced Persons’ centres across the nations to deliver relief materials and alternative conditions of living, especially for women and children.
It stressed that anything short of purposeful dialogue to resolving the issues will spark the fully mobilized action.
The Association’s position was made known by Comrade Igwe Achese, the Chairman of the Joint Council of NUPENGASSAN.
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I’m Committed To Community Dev – Ajinwo
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RSG Tasks Rural Dwellers On RAAMP …As Sensitization Team Visits Akulga, Degema, Three Others

Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their living conditions.
This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.
Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s
She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.
According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.
The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.
Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.
Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.
According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.
He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.
Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.
During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.
The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.
He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.
They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.
At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.
King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.
Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.
Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.
At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.
He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.
Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.
John Bibor
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Senate Replaces Natasha As Committee Chairman

The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.
Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.
In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.
However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.
Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.
Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.
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