The Petroleum Tanker Drivers ,PTD, has issued a stern warning, threatening to withdraw from their umbrella body, the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers ,NUPENG, unless the President, Williams Akporeha, and General Secretary, Afolabi Olawale, resign.
Gbenga Olawale, an Ex-Officio of the PTD from Ibadan depot, conveyed this ultimatum in a statement, indicating that a nationwide protest is imminent to amplify their demand.
In the statement released on Sunday, PTD members were directed to affix leaves to the front of their trucks as a symbolic warning to NUPENG and the police against any interference and harassment of their leaders.
When the Nigerian government restructured trade unions on an industrial basis in November 1977, the union was formed. NUPENG was formed by the merger of seven unions:
Consolidated Petroleum Workers of Nigeria BP Workers’ Union
Petroleum Tanker Drivers’ Union Esso Workers’ Union
Shell D’Arcy Employees’ Union
Union of Shell Operations Texaco African Workers’ Union
Olawale asserted that Williams, who is not a member of NUPENG, lacks the competence to lead the union. He alleged that Williams was strategically placed in the petrol station workers of NUPENG ,PSW, to facilitate his candidacy for the NUPENG presidency, contrary to the union’s constitution.*
“Williams is not a worker or a pump attendant on record as at the time he was verifying for the president position,” the statement claimed.
Olawale further accused Williams of appointing surrogates to collect union revenue, which was allegedly not utilized for the development of the union and tanker drivers.
The statement called for a fresh election, endorsing Lucky Osusan and Dayyabu Garga as the new NUPENG President and General Secretary, respectively, citing their commitment to eliminating extortion and supporting the interests of PTD members.
As tensions rise within NUPENG, the outcome of this dispute could potentially reshape the dynamics within the petroleum industry’s labor union landscape.
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