The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has adopted a new leadership succession model designed to eliminate recurring disputes over its presidency and ensure greater stability within the union.

Under the constitutional amendment approved unanimously by the relevant organs of the union recently, the elected Deputy President will automatically succeed to the office of President at the end of the incumbent’s tenure, replacing the previous system of direct contests for the presidency.

PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo, who stated this in Abuja at a memorial in honour of late PENGASSAN President, Francis Olabode Johnson (FOJ), who died on 31st May 2019, said the reform was informed by lessons from previous leadership transitions, particularly after the death of former President Francis Johnson in 2019 and the prolonged disputes that followed the union’s 2020 elections.

According to him, the new arrangement is intended to reduce acrimony, provide certainty and allow union leaders to focus on protecting members’ jobs and negotiating improved welfare rather than engaging in prolonged succession battles.

“Whoever is elected Deputy President will automatically become the President. There will no longer be any contest for the office of President. That certainty removes the tension that usually accompanies our transitions,” Osifo said.

He noted that previous leadership contests often created divisions that delayed the union’s ability to negotiate collective bargaining agreements and address members’ welfare.

Osifo said the constitutional amendment was adopted after studying succession models used by several professional bodies, including the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), whose leadership structure inspired the reforms.

The new system will take effect at PENGASSAN’s National Delegates Conference scheduled for August 22, when a new leadership will emerge under the amended constitution.

He expressed confidence that the transition would be the smoothest in the union’s history, saying there was no factional crisis within the Central Working Committee (CWC), National Executive Council (NEC) or the Standing Delegates Conference (SDC).

“We are moving in one direction. There is no rancour in the leadership organs of the union. Stability allows us to protect jobs better, negotiate better collective bargaining agreements and improve members’ welfare,” he said.

Osifo also reflected on the union’s journey since the death of former President Francis Johnson, describing the period as one of the most difficult in PENGASSAN’s history.

He said Johnson’s passing initially threw the union into uncertainty, but that successive leaders had strengthened the organisation while preserving his legacy of service.

Meanwhile, former PENGASSAN President Brown Ogbeifun has praised Osifo’s leadership, describing him as one of the most impactful presidents in the union’s history.

Ogbeifun credited Osifo and his Central Working Committee with restoring stability to PENGASSAN and improving members’ welfare despite inheriting a divided organisation.

He also paid an emotional tribute to the late Francis Johnson, whom he described as a compassionate leader, mentor and unifier whose commitment to humanity transcended ethnic and religious divides.

Ogbeifun urged the incoming leadership to preserve Johnson’s legacy of selfless service and ensure that PENGASSAN remains united in advancing workers’ welfare and maintaining industrial harmony in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.

In his tributes, the immediate past General Secretary of PENGASSAN, Lumumba Okugbawa, lauded Johnson for demonstrating that no enduring leadership exists without sacrifice, saying: “Every meaningful achievement in history has demanded that someone surrender comfort for a greater cause. The progress of every nation, institution or community is the product of men and women who placed collective interest above personal ambition.”

He noted that the late PENGASSAN President, who passed on May 31, 2019, established a long-lasting legacy that is still making an impact in the life of the association, church and beyond his immediate family.