PENGASSAN Suspends Plan to Halt Oil Exports

• PENGASSAN Suspends Plan to Halt Oil Exports

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has suspended its planned strike to stop exportation of crude oil after authorities released arrested oil workers accused of breaking COVID-19 lockdown rules.

On Thursday, Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, had arrested 22 staff of ExxonMobil for illegally entering the state despite curfew to curtail the spread of the coronavirus.

Wike said: “Yesterday, it was ExxonMobil that brought 22 people into Rivers State. Although, service commanders, including the Commissioner of Police, are pleading that we should allow them to return to Uyo. I know their predicament because they take orders from Abuja.

“But, this one, I will fight this one. I have told the Attorney-General to prepare; we are going to court against them. We will fight this fight legally. ExxonMobil cannot bring in 22 people illegally into Rivers State.

“ExxonMobil does not operate in Rivers State. They only make use of the Onne Port. We are not sure of the health status of the people they brought into the state because they can enter Eleme and Onne communities.

“We cannot leave corporate bodies who are not obeying the laws while akara and groundnut sellers are being charged to court in Lagos. This ExxonMobil matter will expose those in Abuja. I am ready for them. Rivers State is not a pariah state and we will not be.”

However, President, Ndukaku Ohaeri, and General Secretary, Lumumba Okugbawa, PENGASSAN, on Saturday, in a statement, directed that all members in the oil and gas industry must withdraw service by midnight of April 19 and noon of April 20.

The statement reads: “Recall that on April 16, 2020, we raised the alarm over the illegal arrest and detention of 21 members staff of ExxonMobil by the Rivers Police Command.

“This was on the pretext that the workers violated the state executive order on the prevention of movement to curtail the spread of the Coronavirus in the state.

“It is more than 48 hours that these patriotic workers, who were lured from the border between Rivers and Akwa Ibom, are still detained under inhabitable and inhuman conditions and denied access to basic necessities of life at Elekhahia Stadium.

“All entreaties to the Rivers Government to see reasons that they were on essential duties which is for the economic interest of the country have been rebuffed.”

The union has now suspended the planned strike after Governor Wike released the 21 members on Sunday.