The Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers says the unbundling of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation will impact negatively on the economy.
Cogent Ojobor, the Chairman of the Warri, Delta State Branch of NUPENG, stated this when he spoke with newsmen in Warri on Wednesday.
Ojobor added that the unbundling would increase unemployment if not properly handled, adding that the union would not call-off its strike until the Federal Government does the right thing.
Ojobor explained that the union embarked on the strike because the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, failed to engage stakeholders before unbundling the NNPC.
According to him, not carrying members of the union along before taking such a decision was wrong.
He said: “If the unions do not fight against these arbitrary decisions, the oil industry may soon collapse.
“Jobs are shrinking by way of redundancy and layoffs.
“All locations of NNPC have been instructed to shut down by 12am.
“The decision to unbundle the NNPC was taken in a hurry and necessary priority steps were not taken.
“The decision was taken without consultation with stakeholders and that is detrimental to the sustenance of the nation’s oil industry.”
This, Ojobor added, violated the law establishing the national oil corporation.
Ojobor said the union had written a letter to the Minister in December and January, adding: “He promised to convene stakeholders meetings to deliberate on the way forward.
“This strike would have happened earlier, but there had been series of meetings where we thought there would be a clear-cut roadmap.”
Ojobor said the revenue accruing from the oil sector could be used to diversify the economy.
Meanwhile, some residents of Warri told News Agency of Nigeria that there was need for government to address the situation.
They decried the current fuel scarcity in the state, which they said was biting hard on the masses.
NAN.
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