NUPENG disowns marketers association, warns Nigerians against dealings

A group posing as an association of marketers and transporters of oil and gas has been disassociated by the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers.

NUPENG stated that the organisation does not have legal status and that its members are attempting to take advantage of gullible Nigerians.

This was said in a statement released in Port Harcourt on Monday and forwarded to journalists by NUPENG's National President, Williams Akporeha, and Secretary General, Afolabi Olawale.

"The leadership of our great Union has been drawn to some advertisements on news media of some unscrupulous and dangerous individuals who claim to be members of one amorphous association that they claim is both transporters and marketers of the oil and gas at the same time," the statement partially reads.
Furthermore, we would like to declare that this association is nothing more than a group of unsuccessful rent seekers under the subsidy regime and irredeemable petroleum product smugglers masquerading as entrepreneurs.

Since the current administration eliminated subsidies for petroleum products and rendered smuggling unprofitable for them, "the general public and government institutions are hereby warned and strongly advised to be extremely wary of these individuals who are desperately seeking ways and means to continue exploiting Nigerians and collecting rents in other manners."

"The leadership of our great Union recognises the National Association of Road Transport Owners as the legitimate umbrella body of Transporters in the Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry and Employers of Petroleum Tankers Drivers, with whom our Union has Collective Bargaining Agreement on behalf of Petroleum Tankers Drivers," the statement reads, describing the legally recognised organisations of NUPENG.We also acknowledge as valid marketers of oil and gas products the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria, the Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria, and the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria. In the downstream segment of the Nigerian oil and gas industry, these are reputable and well-known associations of marketers.

Additionally, there is no doubt that the Nigeria Labour laws only recognize NUPENG and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria as the umbrella bodies for oil and gas Workers in Nigeria.

“These are the two organisations that represent and protect the job interests of the Nigeria oil and gas workers including Petroleum Tanker Drivers as prescribed in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.

People and public officials were cautioned by NUPENG not to allow themselves to be linked to the unidentified group.

Because these usurpers and rent seekers are merely miscreants, name droppers, and dishonest businesspeople who can sell their families and nation for cash, we kindly ask all well-meaning Nigerians and government officials whose names these usurpers and rent seekers are dropping to immediately reject any invitation from them and publicly condemn them. They are regrettably among those who have contributed to the nation's current economic problems and hardships.

"They have now turned to these names-calling and cheap blackmail to further their insidious rent-seeking schemes after multiple unsuccessful attempts to pressure our Union into collecting money for them at various petroleum depots," the statement read.