FG Unaware of NUPENG’s Strike Threat – Ministry

The Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment on Thursday said it was not yet aware of the plans made by a unit of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas workers.

The spokesperson for the ministry, Olajide Oshundun, made this known in an interview with our correspondent in Abuja on Saturday.

The Petroleum Tankers Drivers, a branch of NUPENG, had threatened to embark on strike over harassment by security officials.

The Chairperson of Petrol Tanker Drivers under the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers,Lucky Osesua, said the union would stop lifting products at its Port Harcourt zone by Monday, January 9.

Speaking during a press conference in Abuja, Osesua alleged that men of the Nigerian military burnt down two trucks conveying high pour fuel oil popularly known as black oil while in transit from Imo State to Delta State.

He further warned that the decision to suspend operations would stand until the damage incurred as a result of the high-handedness of the military task force was addressed.

But reacting to the threat of strike, the labour ministry’s spokesperson, Oshundun, said, “Normally, they are to notify the ministry but I don’t think they have done that. However, they have a national body they report to, so they will take care of the matter. They can’t just decide to go on strike, there is a process to it.