Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have called on the Federal Government to carry out urgent reforms in the NNPC.
This they argued would enable the corporation to function efficiently.
Alhaji Abdulwaheed Omar, NLC President, and his TUC counterpart, Mr Peter Esele, said this on Monday in Abuja in separate speeches to commemorate the 2012 May Day celebration.
“The downstream sector as presently constituted is characterised by industry dominance by NNPC and general monopolistic tendencies,'' Omar said.
“We need to design strategies for opening up monopoly assets and infrastructure to competitors, who must of course pay economic fees.’’
The NLC president decried the corruption in the petroleum sector and called on stakeholders in the industry to put hands on deck to sanitise the sector.
Omar called for a comprehensive reform of the downstream sector and the revival of domestic refining, through the complete overhaul of the domestic refineries and creation of new Greenfield refineries.
“We believe that our domestic refineries must be made to work. Appropriate incentives need to be worked out to attract new investment in refining,’’ he said.
He said this would eventually lead to an end in fuel importation and creation of economic and job opportunities for the teeming unemployed youths in the country.
In his speech, Esele decried the rate of “dishonest behaviour'' in the oil and gas sector and called for its repositioning for the economic stability of the nation.
“We want to use this unique opportunity of our celebration to say that until Nigeria gets it right with the sector, it will be difficult for the nation to move forward.
“There is no other sector of the nation’s economy that has experienced the kind of sleaze and opaqueness that is going on in the oil and gas industry,’’ he said.
He stressed the need for the NNPC to be operated like a commercial entity and the need to urgently pass the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) to bring professionalism to the sector.
“I can assure you that the PIB committee of which I am a member will submit its report this month. We need to put all hands on deck to ensure the quick passage of the bill,’’ he said.
He called on the National Assembly and the government to ensure that the recommendations of the House probe on subsidy were implemented.
The implementation of the Farouk Lawan-led ad hoc committee should be to the letter as a first step to sanitising the sector.
The TUC president accused oil cartels of preventing the coming on stream of new refineries and called on all stakeholders to ensure that the nation met its local refining capacity.
“We want to categorically state that there is a gang up against the Nigerian people by the oil cartel who are bent on toeing the path of easy money,
“It has been established that it is possible to build refineries in Nigeria and run them profitably,’’ he said.
However, the Workers Day celebration, which took place at the Eagle Square, recorded a high turnout amidst tight security.
The celebration had as its theme “Right to Work, Food and Education: Panacea to Insecurity.’’
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