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Re-Drafted PIB Stirs Anxiety Among Oil Workers
Nigerian oil workers have criticised the redrafted Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) packaged by the Federal Government for presentation to the National Assembly for approval early next year.
The new draft titled “Petroleum Industry Governance & Institutional Framework Bill 2015”, is for an Act to provide the governance and institutional framework for the petroleum industry and other related matters.
However, workers in three regulatory agencies in the petroleum industry, namely Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) and Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF), have raised concerns about the redrafted Bill not providing adequate accommodation for their interests and other oil workers.
Chairmen of the various agencies’ chapter of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) have petitioned the National Executive Council of the union to seek its “extreme urgent intervention” by meeting with the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, to discuss their concerns.
The petition, written under the aegis of “Regulators’ Forum” was signed by PENGASSAN Chairman, PPPRA Chapter, Victor Ononokpono, along with his DPR counterpart, Garba Bello, and their counterpart in PEF, Aminu Ahmed.
The concerns of workers in the three agencies bordered on observations the proposed law may have inadvertently left the oil workers in the lurch.
Although the trio commended the Minister’s effort to stimulate reforms in the industry after several failed attempts in the past, they noted some inconsistencies in the draft PIB, which have stirred some real fears about a veiled attempt by government to sack its members.
Specifically, the anxious workers drew attention to some of the inconsistencies in Part 3 of the bill, on the establishment of the Nigeria Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NPRC), Section 13, on the composition of its Board, and Section 87, on the transfer of staff.
The Bill provides that the Commission would combine the monitoring and regulatory roles and responsibilities of DPR and PPPRA to “administer and enforce policies, laws and regulations relating ti all aspects of petroleum operations.”
The oil workers are worried that the Bill was silent on the fate of an important agency like the PEF vested with the responsibility of ensuring uniform pricing of petroleum products in the country.
“The Union senses a subtle ploy to retrench or drop some of the work force transiting to the Nigeria Petroleum Regulatory Commission with the contentious clause on ‘transfer of certain employees,” the Forum noted.
“Cessation of employment and transfer of staff should be automatic and guaranteed as provided by the Public Service rules and Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
To show how unfriendly the redraft PIB was to Labour, the oil workers said the composition of the governing Board of the NPRC did not have a single representation from any arm of the organised labour.
This is a departure from the provisions of the original draft 2012 Bill. Part D, Section 47 (2) (f) and (g) on the Board of the Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Agency (DPRA), representatives of the two major oil workers unions, the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and PENGASSAN were listed as members.
As the highest policy and administrative hierarchy of the petroleum industry, the redraft Bill listed the Governing Board to include, among others, representatives of the Ministries of Petroleum Resources, Finance and Environment.
A close scrutiny of the redraft Bill also revealed that neither the role nor status of PEF was specified, fuelling fears by its workers that government might be contemplating their sack, as there was equally no provision for neither their absorption nor transfer of service.
Equally, in the 2012 PIB, the establishment of PEF was included, to which any net surplus revenue recovered from petroleum products marketing companies should be paid.
Part F, section 101 (2) (e-h) also provided for representatives of the various affiliate oil workers’ groups and the labour unions, as members of the Board.
“Apart from the uncertainty of the agency’s institutional role, the draft Bill as currently drafted will create job loss, as no provision for absorption or transfer of service for the work force is contemplated,” the oil workers said.
“The Central Working Committee must make a public position known on the non-inclusion of organised labour in the composition of the governing Boards of Commission against international best practice.”
They asked the national unions to extract a memorandum of understanding on the re-drafting of the contentious issues, particularly as it concerned job loss of PENGASSAN members across the existing agencies (PEF, PPPRA and DPR.).
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.