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TUC president, Festus Osifo
The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria has commended the Federal Government for the smooth take-off of the Port Harcourt refinery after work was completed.
According to a statement released by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the refinery commenced operation on Tuesday, and products are expected to be loaded before Friday.
Briefing reporters on Tuesday at the end of its National Executive Council meeting in Abuja, President of TUC, Festus Osifo, urged the government to expedite action on the remaining refineries.
Osifo said Port Harcourt, Warri, Kaduna, and the new PH refineries have the capacity to produce 400, 000 barrels of crude oil per day.
The TUC president said that when these refineries come on stream, they will eliminate monopoly and bring a system of competition into the downstream sector of the oil and gas industry.
Osifo said, “We have heard reports that the Port Harcourt refinery has resumed processing crude, but we are working to validate this claim.
“But beyond the old Port Harcourt Refinery, we want the government to also revisit or expedite work in other refineries. Warri refineries, Kaduna refineries, and the new PH Refineries. Those four refineries combined are holding close to 400,000 barrels of crude production per day.
“So we call on the government to expedite action on all these refineries. This is because it will eliminate monopoly and it will bring a system of competition into the downstream sector of the oil and gas industry.”
The labour leader urged states yet to announce figures for the new minimum wage to do so.
He also charged states that have made pronouncements on the new wage to complete work on the consequential adjustments so that workers can begin to enjoy the new wage.
Osifo said, “The Minimum Wage Act was signed in July, and since it was signed into law, a lot of states have been making pronouncements, announcing different figures as their minimum wage
“The NEC of TUC observes that it is not enough for states to announce new minimum wage figures, so consequential adjustments must be made. As we speak, most of these states have not effectively carried out a proper consequential adjustment.
“We are calling on such states to sit down with organised labour to plot all the tables as regards consequential adjustments so that workers across each of these states will start benefiting from the new minimum wage.
“There are some states that have no conversations about the new minimum wage. There is a two-day warning strike currently going on in Cross River State because the state government is not responding to the workers with regard to the issue of the minimum wage. We call on the governor to take the welfare of workers seriously.
“As we speak, a state like Zamfara has not even constituted a committee on minimum wage. There is no discussion yet on how the new minimum wage will be implemented or the consequential adjustments. We call on these governors to urgently prioritise the welfare of their workers.”
