The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) have rejected alleged plans by the federal government to sell significant shares in Joint Venture (JV) assets managed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
At a joint briefing in Abuja on Tuesday, September 23, PENGASSAN President, Comrade Festus Osifo, and NUPENG President, Williams Akporeha, warned that the move to amend the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) and reduce NNPCL’s role in managing oil and gas could undermine the economy, weaken the oil sector, and jeopardise workers’ welfare.
They argued that cutting government stakes in JV assets, currently 55–60 percent, by as much as 30–35 percent for quick cash was short-sighted and dangerous.
Osifo said, “The government wants to reduce its stake in these assets; principally, they want to sell huge percentages in these assets… so that they will have some cash to spend in other areas.
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“But as an association, as PENGASSAN and NUPENG, we say no, no, no to this. You cannot mortgage our future today, and tomorrow we will be starving as a country.”
The unions warned the sale could push NNPCL into bankruptcy, leaving it unable to meet obligations such as salaries, staff welfare, and contributions to the national budget.
They recalled earlier divestments by ENI, ExxonMobil, and Shell, which sold Nigerian operations to local firms, insisting further sales would cripple NNPCL.
On the alleged plan to amend the PIA, the unions accused the Ministry of Finance of trying to edge out the Ministry of Petroleum from NNPCL ownership, calling it an aberration.
They urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene, saying, “This is not the direction to go.”