Ali Ndume, former senate leader, has urged the ministry of petroleum resources and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to take a firm interest in the rift between Dangote refinery and the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) to prevent disruptions in product distribution.
The warning followed an industrial action by NUPENG on
September 8 over the alleged refusal of Dangote refinery to allow its truck
drivers to join the union.
Dangote refinery denied the claims.
On September 9, NUPENG suspended the strike.
Also, on September 16, DAPPMAN accused the refinery of
stifling competition by selling products cheaper to international traders than
to local marketers.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Ndume urged the
stakeholders to avoid inciting division and power tussles that affect
Nigerians.
“I urge NUPENG, PENGASSAN, and all concerned stakeholders to
engage in constructive dialogue with Dangote rather than inciting division and
undue sensationalism in the media,” he added.
“Our common goal should be to balance labour rights with the
imperatives of national development and not put ordinary citizens at the
receiving end of a needless power tussle.”
Also, Ndume expressed concern over what he described as “a
poisonous media narrative to paint Dangote in bad light in the eyes of
Nigerians and the international community”.
While calling for caution, the senator recalled the failed
attempts by past administrations to encourage private operators to build
refineries, saying many only took advantage of crude oil allocations without
making tangible efforts.
“Before Dangote took the risk to build his refinery,
previous administrations had granted licences to many Nigerians. What did they
do with it? Some of them only cashed on the incentives of crude oil
allocation,” Ndume said.
“If my memory serves me right, licences were granted to 12
private operators as far back as 2002 to build refineries and reduce dependence
on imported fuel.
“The second round of licences was done in 2007 by the then
Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) after revoking the first batch and
granting nine new licences to private investors.
“Those parading themselves as fuel importers today didn’t
seize the initiative to come together to build refineries. Again, during the
Muhammadu Buhari administration, licences were granted to private investors to
build modular refineries.
“How many of them actually scratched the surface but they
are ganging up to falsely accuse Dangote of monopolising the market.”
Ndume, who represents Borno south, faulted the claims of
monopoly, saying the federal government, in line with the Petroleum Industry
Act (PIA), has taken steps to ensure deregulation and healthy competition.
“It is wrong to talk about monopoly in a deregulated
industry,” he said.
Ndume added that there are no deliberate bottlenecks against
anyone and no industry player has been accorded a special concession to the
detriment of others.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com