The Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers has threatened to go on strike if the Federal Government does not fully settle outstanding subsidy payments by Wednesday.
The President of NUPENG, Comrade Igwe Achese, said the announcement by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, that some of the oil marketers had been paid was not true in the real sense of it because only those favoured by the government were paid.
Achese said only portfolio carriers and not investors in the oil sector were paid.
The NUPENG president told newsmen in Lagos on Monday that for payment to be seen as having been made, Okonjo-Iweala should meet the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation and other marketers’ payment obligation.
He said without doing this, it would only result to hardship for Nigerians.
He said the ploy of the government was to put up the country’s refineries for privatization to those favoured by the government at ridiculous prices.
Achese said: “We have cried out on several occasions on the untold hardship and the unfair labour practices meted out to our workers in the two giant multi-nationals – Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) and Chevron Nigeria Limited.
“The modern day slavery practiced by these two oil multi-nationals had turned our members into penury. They have continued to employ casuals that they hire and fire at will, without any conditions of service, including converting labour contracts to service contracts and casuals.
“We are open to dialogue but if by Wednesday the issue of subsidy is not resolved, we will embark on a nationwide strike.
“We will not fold our hands and watch Nigerians lose their jobs.”
On the allegation that the oil marketers were blackmailing government, Achese said: “You will recall that our last strike action was suspended based on a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signed with all the stakeholders and the Finance Minister that payments would commence on the subsidy owed the marketers. Prior to this, we had had cause to sign MoU of some of our actions on turn-around maintenance of refineries, bad roads, etc, which were never implemented. Let me categorically state that 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 the country during the June 12, 1993 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 ministers like the Finance Minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and her cohorts in the same boat, who have failed to take the country out of the economic woods.”