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Indorama, Workers Bicker Over Poor Service Condition
The management of Indorama Eleme Petrochemical Limited and workers are now in a face-off over alleged discriminatory policies and domination of Indians over their Nigerian colleagues.
Staff of the company, at the weekend locked horns with management, in a peaceful protest to register their displeasure over what they described as ‘slave’ labour policies perpetrated by the management.
The workers, who stormed the gates of the company in their numbers, in the wee hours of last Friday, were locked out by the management who prevented them from entering the company through the aid of heavily armed security operatives, who barricaded the company gates.
The protesting workers, however, dared the heavy rains, chanting solidarity songs, and insisting that their demands be given due attention by management.
Speaking with The Tide during the protest, the branch Chairman of the National Union of Petroleum and National Gas Workers (NUPENG) in the company, Comrade Charmi Eze, traced the genesis of the problem to the management’s decision to impose membership of compromised unions on workers.
Eze, who faulted management’s decision, said labour laws stipulate that workers should join unions of their choice.
The NUPENG boss said such breach of workers’ rights in the company was beyond forced unionism but included discriminatory employment policies which favour Indians over Nigerian workers.
He pointed out that there was a high discrepancy between Indian and Nigerian workers in terms of salaries and allowances, as Indians receive “fabulous allowances and salaries, while Nigerians are paid peanuts.”
Also speaking, the branch Chairman, Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers Union (PENGASAN) in Indorama Eleme Petrochemical, Comrade Innocent Ugwunta, said the decision of management to shut out the workers was deceptive.
He said the allegation by management that the shutting down of the plant by workers caused damage to the equipment was a ploy to cash in on the opportunity to promote its selfish interest.
The PENGASSAN chairman said the Indians were plotting to damage the plants at the expense of the workers so they could declare “over-bloated dividends and swindle the shareholders, including the workers and host communities”.
In her remarks, the Zonal Treasurer of NUPENG, Comrade Mobote Odusanwo, described the Chemical and Non-Metallic Products Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (CANSA) and the National Union of Chemical, Footwear, Rubber, Leather and Metallic Products Employees of Nigeria (NUPLANFEN) as stooges of management.
Branch Secretary of NUPENG, Indorama, Comrade Walter Tamuno, in his reaction, flayed the management for flouting the directives of the Rivers State Government on the matter.
He said the decision of management to force workers on leave was a clear connivance with the Indians to sabotage the company.
It could be recalled that the management of Indorama, in a circular, dated 14 July, 2017, signed by an Indian human resources manager, had alleged that “the continued shut down of all plants since 12 July, 2017, has caused substantial damage to the plants, as well as made operations unsafe”.
The circular called for inspection and assessment from experts for proper repairs and maintenance before safe re-start of the facility, and urged all employees to proceed on leave until the plants are safe for operation.
Efforts to get the Media Relations Manager of the company, Jossy Nkwocha, to comment on the matter were abortive as he did not respond to all phone calls.
Taneh Beemene
The Nigeria Immigration Service has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this yesterday while inspecting Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
He said the centralised production system aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for better service delivery.
The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has disbursed N2.225 trillion as federation revenue for the month of August 2025, the highest ever allocation to the three tiers of government and other statutory recipients.
This marks the second consecutive month that FAAC disbursements have crossed the N2 trillion mark.
The revenue, shared at the August 2025 FAAC meeting in Abuja, was buoyed by increases in oil and gas royalty, value-added tax (VAT), and common external tariff (CET) levies, according to a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting.
Out of the N2.225 trillion total distributable revenue, FAAC said N1,478.593 trillion came from statutory revenue, N672.903 billion from VAT, N32.338 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), and N41.284 billion from Exchange Difference.
The communiqué revealed that gross federation revenue for the month stood at N3.635 trillion. From this amount, N124.839 billion was deducted as cost of collection, while N1,285.845 trillion was set aside for transfers, interventions, refunds, and savings.
From the statutory revenue of N1.478 trillion, the Federal Government received N684.462 billion, State Governments received N347.168 billion, and Local Government Councils received N267.652 billion. A further N179.311 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) went to oil-producing states as derivation revenue.
From the distributable VAT revenue of N672.903 billion, the Federal Government received N100.935 billion, the states received N336.452 billion, while the local governments got N235.516 billion.
Of the N32.338 billion shared from EMTL, the Federal Government received N4.851 billion, the States received N16.169 billion, and the Local Governments received N11.318 billion.
From the N41.284 billion exchange difference, the Federal Government received N19.799 billion, the states received N10.042 billion, and the local governments received N7.742 billion, while N3.701 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the oil-producing states as derivation.
The Governing Council of Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori, has decried the inadequate power supply and poor state of infrastructural facilities and equipment at the institution.
The Council also appealed to the government, including Non-Governmental Organisations, agencies, as well as well-meaning Rivers people to intervene to restore and sustain the laudable gesture, dreams and aspirations of the founding fathers of the polytechnic.
The Chairman of the newly inaugurated Council, Professor Friday B. Sigalo, made this appeal during a tour of facilities at the Polytechnic, recently.
Accompanied by members of the team, Prof Sigalo emphasised the position of technology, technical and vocational education in sustainable development.
He noted that with the prospects on ground, and the programmes and activities undertaken in the polytechnic, there is no doubt that the institution would add values to the educational system in our society and foster the desired development, if the existing challenges are jointly tackled.
This was contained in a statement signed by Deputy Registrar, Public Relations, Kenpoly, Innocent Ogbonda-Nwanwu, and made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt.
The chairman who restated the intention of his team of technocrats to ensure that KenPoly enjoys desirable face-lift, said the Council would deliver on its core mandates, accordingly.
Earlier, the Rector, KenPoly Engr. Dr. Ledum S. Gwarah, commended the appointment of Professor Friday B. Sigalo as Chairman of the KenPoly Governing Council.
He described him and his team as seasoned technocrats and expressed confidence in their ability to succeed.
The Rector pledged the management’s support to the Council to ensure that KenPoly resumes its rightful place in the comity of polytechnics in the country.
Facilities visited by the Governing Council include KenPoly workshops, laboratories, skills acquisition centre, library, hostels and medical centre.
Chinedu Wosu
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