The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has warned that the fight against insecurity may remain difficult unless governments at all levels urgently address rising poverty and improve the living conditions of Nigerians. and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has warned that the fight against insecurity may remain difficult unless governments at all levels urgently address rising poverty and improve the living conditions of Nigerians.

The association also called for stronger and more responsive governance at the grassroots, arguing that local governments must be repositioned to address the everyday challenges confronting citizens.
PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo, made the call during a presidential dinner yesterday, organised to honour past leaders of the association for their contributions to its growth and development since its establishment in 1978.

Osifo said the economic hardship confronting Nigerians had implications beyond the welfare of organised workers, noting that even employees earning relatively good salaries were affected by the financial difficulties of family members, neighbours and members of their communities.

According to him, a worker may have a good income but could quickly find such earnings depleted by the responsibility of supporting unemployed relatives and other people around them who are struggling financially.

He therefore stressed that while PENGASSAN’s primary responsibility remained the protection of its members’ jobs, remuneration and welfare, the association could not ignore the wider economic challenges confronting the country.

Osifo said governments must demonstrate greater responsiveness to the plight of Nigerians and recognise that addressing poverty was a collective responsibility involving the Federal Government, states and local governments.

He expressed particular concern about the state of local government administration, describing the local government as the level of government closest to the people and one that should provide citizens with an avenue to demand accountability over basic community needs.

However, he lamented that many local governments had become largely ineffective, leaving citizens without an effective grassroots mechanism through which they could demand solutions to problems affecting their communities.

He argued that the situation had contributed to the growing level of poverty and called for a fundamental review of the way governance was conducted at the grassroots.

The PENGASSAN President further warned that government would find it difficult to significantly reduce insecurity if widespread poverty persisted.

He consequently urged governments across the country to work together, demonstrate political will and implement practical measures to reduce poverty and improve living conditions.

Osifo said the gathering was organised to ensure that the sacrifices and contributions of those who had served the association over the decades were not forgotten.

He noted that former leaders had continued to contribute to the progress of PENGASSAN by offering advice to the current leadership whenever they identified issues requiring attention or areas where improvements could be made Osifo said the awards were tokens of appreciation for the sacrifices made by the former officials and their contributions to building the foundation upon which successive administrations had continued to build.