A leadership crisis has broken out in the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) after members of its Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) branch accused national leaders of undemocratic conduct and constitutional violations, according to documents obtained by TheCable.
In a petition to the registrar of trade unions at the Ministry of Labour and Productivity, the branch members named Festus Osifo, PENGASSAN national president and also president of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, and Lumumba Okugbawa, the general secretary.
They alleged that the two leaders had undermined internal processes and interfered in the electoral affairs of the branch.
“As a branch under the PENGASSAN structure, we have made several efforts to engage the national leadership constructively on matters affecting our members and the proper administration of our branch in line with the constitution of our union,” the petition read.
“Despite these efforts, numerous letters and correspondences have been met with utter disregard and non-responsiveness.”
The petition, endorsed by more than 523 members, representing over two-thirds of the NMDPRA branch, accused the national leadership of imposing a caretaker committee on the branch without proper elections.
The group said this amounted to an abuse of office and a gross violation of the provisions of the PENGASSAN constitution, especially as it pertains to the rights of branches, democratic engagement, and internal dispute resolution.
The federal government has been asked to intervene.
The Ministry of Labour and Employment had in August urged the branch to maintain calm and suspend its planned election while it sought to mediate.
However, the petitioners said the national body almost immediately inaugurated the caretaker committee in what they described as continued non-compliance and unconstitutional acts.
The dispute was reported on Sunday according to the cable, citing petitions and correspondence between the aggrieved members, PENGASSAN’s central leadership and the labour ministry.
