The federal government has taken a bold step towards ending the crisis that looms in the oil and the power industry, as the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala yesterday relocated to Lagos in an attempt to avert the threat of a nationwide strike by the National Union of Petrol and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) . Her movement to Lagos was borne out of the desire of the government to reach out to the stakeholders in the industry and to conclude on the best approach towards ending the crisis.
Meanwhile, NUPENG had yesterday warned the Federal Government that if it does not meet up with its promises before or by Thursday this week, it will embark on a nationwide strike on Friday.
However, the government had assured the residents of the Federal capital territory as at yesterday that it was doing everything possible to ensure that the 4 days scarcity in the nation’s number one capital is brought to an end.
In a statement in Abuja, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr Doyin Okupe said ‘the approach taken by government at resolving the different crisis being faced by the government is multi-faceted and multi-dimensional. The Ministers of Labour, Power, and other high level officers of government have met for several hours with the aggrieved PHCN workers and virtually all their demands have been agreed upon except for the issue of severance benefits of workers.
Okupe said, “While the workers insist on their terms of employment, government’s proposition is based on the Pension Act of 2004. However, this matter will most probably be resolved favourably within the coming week by the Presidency.”
Okupe continued: “In the same vein, the coordinating minister of the economy and Finance Minister, Dr Ngozi Okonjo–Iweala has shifted her base temporarily to Lagos in spite of the holidays and has been engaged intensively also with the aggrieved marketers, union members and other stakeholders in the downstream sector.
“All indications are to the effect that favourable resolutions are being reached and all matters are likely to be resolved within this week, as all these efforts are being made to ensure that the crisis that has caused a lot of hardships to commuters and motorists is not unduly prolonged and does not also extend beyond the city of Abuja in the case of the fuel scarcity.
“The Federal Government, therefore, urges Nigerians to be calm, as all hands are on deck to ensure that normalcy returns soonest,” he said.
Presently, residents of the Federal Capital territory are going through some major challenges as a result of the acute fuel scarcity that has taken over the state.
Similarly, the PHCN has also threatened to go on a nationwide protest if the federal goes ahead with its privatization policy without considering and meeting up with all their demands.
NUPENG had issued a general warning yesterday, asking the federal government to pay off the subsidy claims or face the music as it was determined to go on an indefinite strike.
While speaking with journalists in Lagos, President of NUPENG, Comrade Igwe Achese, had asked the Finance Minister to resign for not only toying with the transformational agenda of the Goodluck administration, but for paying subsidy claims to portfolio importers due to her closeness with them.
Achese said NUPENG cannot be used by the government. According to him “NUPENG cannot and will never be used by the Federal Government, institutions, companies because we are stakeholders in the industry. The fight and struggle for the enthronement of democracy in this country during the June 12, 1993 struggle cannot be in vain.
The struggle for the emancipation of Nigerians from the hands of the military cannot be rubbished or swept under the carpet by some Ministers, like the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and her cohorts in the same boat who have failed to take the country out of economic woods. It is our firm belief that President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, the number one worker of our great country, Nigeria, will heed this clarion call in order to move the transformation agenda forward.”
“It is against this back-drop that we call on the Minister of Finance to pay all outstanding subsidy claims to the NNPC and the private depot owners, who are being asked by the same government to import fuel. We state that the failure of the Minister to meet the NNPC and marketers’ payment obligation is a ploy to create hardship for Nigerians.
“This is a plan for them to put-up the refineries for privatisation to their cronies at ridiculous rates. That is why we want the Minister to explain the rationale behind the selective ‘payments of the subsidy claims. We also state emphatically that if the government is sincere in its subsidy payment, why are they not fully implementing findings of the adhoc-committee on subsidy, set up by the House of Representatives? “
He further asserted thus “we are involved in the on-going strike in the Federal Capital Territory to demand for payments of subsidy because of our traditional role of protecting workers who are Nigerians and members of NUPENG in the mid and downstream sector of the oil and gas industry, especially those working at the private depots.
Their jobs are at stake, as the marketers can no longer keep them due to huge debts owed as a result of the nonpayment of subsidy. Our members are even being owed five months salaries as a result of the problem.”
Achese who also looked at other areas of grievances said “we condemn the illegal diversion of crude oil meant for our refineries, which is being sold at the open market. This is a clear case of economic sabotage and must stop; especially at the Port Harcourt Refinery. We use this medium to call on the Federal Government to commence the Turn-Around-Maintenance of the Port Harcourt Refinery to boost fuel supply in the country and other refineries.
“We call on the Federal Government to immediately commence the rehabilitation of depot roads and our national highways that are in terrible state. This will go a long way to reduce tanker accidents and fire disasters.”
On SPDC/Chevron, he said: “We have on several occasion spoken about the untold hardship and un-fair labour practices meted out to our workers in the two giant multi-nationals, the Shell Petroleum Development Company and Chevron Nigeria Limited.
The modern day, slavery practiced by these two oil multi-nationals has turned our members into a state of penury. They have continued to employ casuals that they hire and fire at will, without any conditions of service. These workers are subjected to all forms of de-humanizing condition, including converting labour contracts to service contracts and casuals.
The multi-nationals have failed to honour all MOU’s to stop these atrocities. We are prepared to take this fight to the next stage, if government fails to intervene and call them to order. Our members’ are the people that produce the black-gold and must be treated well.” He had concluded.
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