NUPENG Dispels Strike Rumour As Fuel Scarcity Persists

The National Union of Pe
troleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has debunked the allegation to the fact that the fuel scarcity being experienced in parts of the country was as a result of the union being on  a nationwide strike.
Speaking to The Tide the National President of the Union Comrade Igwe Achese said the union is not on strike despite the re-emergence of queues for fuel in most cities across the country.
Achese said Nigerians need to ask questions about why there is fuel scarcity being experienced now, stressing that NUPENG is not considering any strike action for now.
He insisted that the union may have no choice if government refused to respect the agreement reached with the union to execute the Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) of the nation’s refineries before the end of first quarter of 2014.
The union leader urged the National Assembly to quickly facilitate the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) in order to give the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) sufficient time to devote its resources into its core professional business mandate.
Achese also decried the recent decision of some International Oil Companies (IOCs) to divest from Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
He said the sudden divestment by these IOCs having been in the country for over 50 years constitute an act of conspiracy and economic sabotage.
He queried the rationale behind such a sudden decision by IOCs and why it took them so long to realise that Nigeria does not have friendly business environment again for the oil companies to divest.
The union boss enjoined the International Oil Companies to ensure the best international industrial practice within the oil and gas sector rather than enslavement of Nigerians in the sector.
Achese said “we will shock these IOCs who think they can go to other African countries that recently discovered oil to perpetuate practices that are obsolete in developed countries.
He stressed that Industrial Unions on the continent plan to establish network to ensure the unions work together towards ensuring that only practices that are at par with best global standards are practiced in Africa by these oil companies.
He called  upon the National Assembly to rise up and do something about these IOCs divestment challenges in order to protect the country against job losses in oil and gas sector.

Philip Okparaji