Militants threatening us – PENGASSAN

PETROLEUM and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, yesterday raised alarm that some identified leaders militant groups in the Niger Delta and some other unidentified ones have been threatening the the lives of its leaders, especially the president’s, Comrade Babatunde Ogun and the Lagos Zonal Chairman, Reverend Folorunsho Oginni, since the association threatened to shut down upstream sector of the Petroleum industry, including export terminals over the refusal of the Federal Government to revert to N65 per litter of petrol as being demanded by Nigerians.

In a statement by PENGASSAN, however said the association remained undaunted because of the interest of Nigerians was above any individual or region, saying the issue at hand had no ethnic coloration.

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PENGASSAN threatens total oil production shutdown

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has directed all oil production platforms to be on red alert in preparation for total production shutdown.

In a statement issued today, the PENGASSAN President, Mr. Babatunde Ogun, said this was in response to the callousness of the federal government, in allowing matters to deteriorate so far that the current paralysis in the country has entered the third day.

“We believe that a Government that is alive to its responsibilities will not allow this strike to degenerate thus far,” he said, noting that as an affiliate of the Trade Union Congress, and fully in support of the current action as directed by the TUC and the Nigeria Labour Congress, no report is currently being generated from production locations to both DPR and FGN, one of the very first steps in a shut down process.

Pointing out that the fuel subsidy question is only the tip of the iceberg amidst a plethora of issues needing urgent redress, PENGASSAN reiterated that before the removal of the fuel subsidy, the following conditions must be met:

•Fixing of the four refineries and building new ones;

•Regular power supply;

•Provision of social infrastructures such as rail system and roads ; and

•The elimination of corruption associated with supply and distribution of petroleum products in the downstream sector of the oil industry.

It would be recalled that on December 23, one week before the federal government arbitrarily wiped away the oil subsidy, PENGASSAN urged the same government to investigate companies and other operators in the downstream sector of the oil and gas industry in view of the massive fraud.

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