The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) said on Thursday that it has commenced strike action with the gradual withdrawal of members on the offshore, loading bays and flow stations despite the Eid-el Filtri public holiday.
PENGASSAN National Public Relations Officer, Comrade Emmanuel Ojugbana, said in a statement there is no iota of truth in the report that the strike has been called off or suspended.
“As we are speaking now, some of our members that are in the offshore have been withdrawn, while others who are on critical equipment have commenced gradual shutting down of such equipment before their final disengagement.
“Our members, especially those in offices and downstream sector will join tomorrow (Friday) as they resume from the Eid el Fitri holiday.”
The PENGASSAN spokesperson said the strike was called to draw government’s attention to some critical challenges impacting the survival of the nation’s oil and gas industry.
PENGASSAN listed some of the challenges to include lingering irregular Joint Venture funding and Cash Call payment arrears, lack of a clear cut direction on the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), forceful co-option of government agencies in the industry into the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS), and spate of redundancy and retrenchment in the Oil and Gas industry.