From Uche Usim, Abuja
National President of Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, (NUPENG) Williams Akporeha, has urged Nigerians to remain calm as there is no rift in the national leadership of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) branch of the union.
The assurance became necessary as many thought there was an existing squabble in the union capable of causing products scarcity if not urgently resolved.
Akporeha clarified on Thursday while speaking to journalists in Abuja shortly after Augustine Egbon and other national officers of the PTD- NUPENG assumed office at the national secretariat in Abuja. Egbon and some members of the branch emerged as a new set of national officers last Tuesday at the end of the election held in Ibadan, in accordance with the constitution of NUPENG and approved by the National Executive Council of the union.
The election was sequel to the judgment of Justice Bashir Alkali of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, in the Yenagoa Judicial Division, Bayelsa State, which nullified the Petroleum Tanker Drivers Branch of NUPENG’s election held on 30th June 2O22 in Ibadan, by NUPENG where Lucky Osesua emerged as national chairman.
The NUPENG President, who maintained that there was no faction in PTD-NUPENG, explained that those who were not party to the election held in Ibadan in accordance with the Union Constitution and Bye Laws of the Branch could not lay claims to the national secretariat of the Branch.
He said: “On the issue of whether there is a faction in the PTD Branch of our Union, the fact that you weren’t part of an election process or just because you refused to contest and then go and declare yourself a winner elsewhere doesn’t mean that there is a faction.
“To me, those are the antics of some desperate persons who wanted to hijack positions by all means and we have seen their kind of character, in the way they attacked the new national officers of the branch last week.
“If not for the grace of God, some of us would not have been here today but God saved us from their hands and they will face the wrath of the law for the criminal act they perpetrated. That’s not about the election, that’s not about trade unionism. It is about criminality.
“So, I want to say here that as far as NUPENG is concerned, there is one PTD Branch and the leadership of Comrade Augustine Egbon is the one recognized. I want to use this opportunity to implore Nigerians to ignore any criminal going parading himself as national chairman of PTD or saying he is a member of NUPENG or PTD Branch leadership.
“We don’t know such kind of persons and we urge stakeholders and Nigerians to cooperate with this team which we know as the legitimate executive of the Tanker Drivers Branch of NUPENG.”
Earlier while addressing newsmen, the new National Chairman of the Branch, Egbon, also corroborated the NUPENG President’s position on the processes that led to his emergence as national chairman of the Branch.
He said: “The elections that brought my colleagues and I to these positions was carried out 31st October 2023 at the University of Ibadan Conference Center, Ibadan ni accordance with the Constitution of NUPENG and Bye Laws of our great Branch as approved by the National Executive Council of the Union.
“For the records, in compliance with the judgment delivered by Hon. Justice Bashir A. Alkali of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, in the Yenagoa Judicial Division, held at Yenagoa on Suit No. NICN/YEN/1/2022 which nullified the Petroleum Tanker Drivers Branch of NUPENG,s election held on 30th June 2022 in Ibadan, Oyo State, the leadership of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG)convened and peacefully held a special Delegates Conference for the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) branch of NUPENG today the
31st of October 2023 at the University of Ibadan Conference Center in Ibadan, Oyo State.
“The Special Delegates Conference fully attended by 712 delegates representing 177 Units of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers Branch of NUPENG from the four Zonal Councils of the Union ni Warri, Kaduna, Lagos and Port Harcourt Zones of our great Union (NUPENG).”
“The Special Delegates Conference was very peaceful and orderly conducted.
At the end of the well conducted elections, I, Comrade Augustine Egbon from Benin Unit of the Warri Zonal Council of the Union was duly returned elected as the National Chairman of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers Branch of the Union in accordance with the Bye Law of the Branch and Constitution of the Union.
“Other Officers returned elected after the elections are here with me in this office
today and I want to assure all our members across the Country, critical Stakeholders and the general public that there is no division at all in our Union
and the Branch, our Solidarity remains constant because we know that Workers United can never be defeated.”
General Secretary of NUPENG, Wale Afolabi, also disclosed that the displaced executive was not in the dark on the resolution to conduct fresh election in accordance with the verdict of Justice Bashir Alkali.
He recalled that the National Executive Committee of the Union invited the former Branch leadership to a meeting where it was briefed on its resolution to conduct a fresh election in accordance with the outcome of the Court judgement and a five care caretaker Committee was put in place after the dissolution of the executive to pave way for a fresh election.
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