The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has raised concerns over the rise of unsafe practices in the oil and gas sector.

The PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo, who raised the alarm at the just-concluded 2025 Energy and Labour Summit (PEALS) in Abuja, said there has been an increase in the number of fatalities of oil workers in recent times.

Osifo noted that oil companies are increasingly using sub-standard or unacceptable equipment in the bid to reduce operational costs at the expense of human lives.

He said: “This is happening in some of the oil and gas installations. Just imagine the cost to human lives. If any of them falls into the waterway, they are gone. Life is truly precious. The true measure of stewardship is ensuring every worker returns home safely. Unsafe conditions must never be the price of resilience.

“The labour leader also warned against incessant policy changes in the sector, particularly recent amendments to the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which he said have unsettled investors,” he said.

Though the passage of the PIA in 2021 was aimed at boosting investment and ensuring policy certainty in the sector, frequent change of policies persists.

As a sector that prioritises corporate social responsibility (CSR), PENGASSAN has completed the renovation of two blocks of classrooms at the Local Education Authority (LEA) Primary School in Tukuruwa village, Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory.

Apart from the renovation, the union also donated 200 chairs, 800 exercise books and 200 school bags to the pupils. Speaking at the handover ceremony, PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo, said the project was part of the association’s deliberate effort to invest in children and impact rural communities.

“PENGASSAN Foundation was unveiled only about 24 months ago, but within this short period, we have carried out several interventions across the country. These children you see here today are the future leaders, including senators, presidents, governors, and council chairmen. Training them in the right environment is a responsibility we take seriously.

“So, for us, we are extremely excited to have undertaken this project. There is nothing more exciting than this, because if these children enter the classroom, they see a suitable chair to sit on. Almost 200 of them were supplied and about 800 exercise books that we have also supplied, as well as school bags, just our little way of saying, thank you to a country that has given us support to be who we are today,” he said.

Recall that PENGASSAN Foundation had previously assisted indigent patients in hospitals with medical bills and supported communities in Benue and other states.

At the handover ceremony, the Chief of Tukuruwa, Luka Nissan III, commended the association for the gesture, saying: “Our hearts are filled with joy because this project has brought hope to this agrarian community. The children now have chairs, books and bags, which will make learning easier.”

He appealed for the fencing of the school to address security challenges, adding that theft and vandalism had been recurring problems.
On his part, Chairman of Kwali Area Council, Danladi Chiya, also lauded PENGASSAN for complementing government efforts in rural education, pledging to grade the road leading to the school before November.

“I am overwhelmed with joy to see that PENGASSAN has remembered Kwali. This intervention is timely and will go a long way in improving the lives of our children,” he said.

For over two years, the two buildings housing the LEA Primary School, Tukuruwa in Kwali Area Council, were in a dilapidated state with their roofs completely blown off by rain, forcing the school children to sit on the bare floor.