…Tasks Oil Workers On Moral Rebirth

Rivers State Governor, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, has called on operators of the oil and gas sector of the nation’s economy to conduct a probe of its members and consider moral rebirth so as to join in the  multipronged efforts at checkmating corruption in the sector.

Governor Amaechi made this call yesterday while commissioning PENGASSAN secretariat in Port Harcourt

Represented by his deputy, Engr. Tele Ikuru, the Governor urged PENGASSAN and other  stakeholders in the sector to take exception to the activities of unscrupulous elements  among their membership with a view to arresting the ugly situation, noting that except we  have a moral rebirth, instances of people recording that ships delivered petroleum products  when they did not would continue to exist in the sector”.

Governor Amaechi, who is also Chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF), charged PENGASSAN to furnish the nation’s policy makers with appropriate information regarding the          industry in order to enhance her economic development, noting that over 90% of the nation’s revenue was derived from the sector, urging them to be forthright in their activities.

He called on stakeholders in the oil and gas sector to expedite efforts at relocating their  headquarters and strategic investments in the sector to Port Harcourt and other parts of the Niger Delta region, describing the locating of their headquarters outside the region as an anomaly.

Earlier, President of PENGASSAN, Comrade Babatunde Ogun pledged the support of the two unions to Governor Amaechi’s development strides. He disclosed that the new secretariat in Port Harcourt was part of the association’s masterplan for a holistic development of the Niger Delta region, adding that PENGASSAN was embarking on investments that would improve the welfare of its members.

In his speech, President General of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Comrade Peter Esele, lauded the ingenuity of the Port Harcourt branch of PENGASSAN for erecting the edifice, assuring them of TUC’s support, and urged other branches to emulate them.