The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has called on the Federal Government to put more effort into tackling the challenges of insecurity and road infrastructure, insisting that while many economic roads remain impassable, the issue of insecurity is hampering their operations.

It also raised serious concerns over escalating job losses and what it described as increasing suppression of workers’ rights in the nation’s oil and gas industry.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammad Dingyadi, represented by the Registrar of Trade Unions, Amos Falonipe, urged the newly elected President of NUPENG, Salimon Oladiti, to build on the cherished legacies of his immediate predecessor, Williams Akporeha.

Speaking on the state of the nation and achievements, during the union’s sixth Quadrennial Delegates Conference, in Lagos, where new leadership emerged to steer the union for another four years, the outgoing president lamented that from the North-East to the South-South, incidents of petroleum truck hijacking and kidnapping had risen sharply, stating that their members now spend more to secure their businesses.

While acknowledging the Federal Government’s efforts on road construction, the NUPENG chief said it was important to bring to the attention of the government that many economic roads still remain in impassable conditions, calling for greater efforts, especially as the rainy season approaches.

According to him, NUPENG members who traverse the nooks and crannies of the country, among other Nigerians, distributing petroleum products and rendering other services, face horrible challenges.

In his valedictory speech, Akporeha warned that many workers — particularly in the informal sector — are facing mounting economic hardship as industry reforms reshape the sector.