There are strong indications that the nation’s oil workers may embark on industrial action any moment from now should the Federal Government fails to fix all dilapidated nation’s roads.
This is as the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) threatened to embark on industrial action without notice if the 10 oil workers kidnapped at sea in Port Harcourt, yesterday, were not released.
President of the union, Williams Akporeha, at a media briefing after the virtual National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, said NUPENG had given the Federal Government a two-week ultimatum to commence total rehabilitation of the roads to save lives and properties and can no longer tolerate the current situation of things.
“We are shocked at the lackadaisical attitude of Local, States and Federal Governments to the issues of addressing the degenerating state of Nigeria roads before the coming of the current raining season, despite all our warnings for them to make necessary construction, repairs and maintenance of all our roads, which are now in parlous state and becoming practically impassable,” he said.
He raised the alarm that most of the nation’s highways have become death traps for the NUPENG members, especially the highways in the Calabar-Itu-Uyo, Port-harcourt – Aba, Mokwa-Jebba – Kaduna, Port-Harcourt-Owerri, Warri-Benin-Auchi-Okene-Lokoja stretch.
He stated that the issues of bad roads is further compounded by the various security agencies who now set up multiple checkpoints on the deplorable roads to exploit and extort money from motorists.
“The brazen extortion of our members, especially during this COVID-19 pandemic was really disconcerting and unfortunate. As a Union, we cannot continue to fold our hands and watch our members, who toil day and night, in the rain, cold and sunshine to make our economy grow to keep suffering like this.”
