Nigeria Content Online

The Petroleum
Tanker Drivers wing of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas
Workers (NUPENG), yesterday, embarked on a nation-wide warning strike
to protest what they term the “indiscriminate victimisation” of their
workers by soldiers and the “mysterious” disappearance of petroleum
products.

NUPENG’s Lagos Zone
chairman, Tokunbo Korede, said the seven days warning strike is coming
after a 21-day ultimatum elapsed on November 26, 2010, following a
meeting with the Chief of Army Staff, the Director-General of the State
Security Service (SSS), the Minister of Labour, and the management of
the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Mr Korede said the
failure of the government officials at the meeting to apprehend and
prosecute the army officials behind the assassination of a tanker
driver in Jos and the disappearance of several tankers, along with
their petroleum products, within military installations has
necessitated them to push their case.

Litany of intimidation

“It is true,” he
said. “It started this morning (yesterday) after the 21-day ultimatum
we gave elapsed. It is a nationwide action with only PTD on strike now.
Our member died instantly at a joint check point of army and police
officers at Jos because he refused to be extorted. The culprits ran to
Bauchi Garrison Command, where our truck was taken. But up till now the
culprits have not being brought out and the tanker and the product are
no longer to be found.”

The union leader
mentioned other incidents, in the month of November, in which tankers
and products were seized by army personnel, only for them to vanish
“with no trace”. “In Ibadan, the army seized our truck,” he said.
“After a week our truck disappeared with no trace. Also, this November
in Port Harcourt, the army and police stopped a luxurious bus on the
road and that is how the tanker driver ran over some people. The army
immediately took our truck to the barracks. We even paid compensation
to the people that died. But after some time the truck and the product
were no more to be found.”

The NUPENG boss says if the federal government does not take the
warning strike serious, it could affect the 2011 general elections.
“For how long are they going to take to fish out those criminal
uniformed men who are behind all this?,” he said. “This is a seven-day
warning strike for those saying we are working on it to bring out a
solution. They need to take us serious because it will be too
disastrous for the coming elections.”