Former national chairmen of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) branch of the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) have dispelled rumours that the PTD was planning to break away from its umbrella union.
They made the clarification on Friday when they paid a solidarity visit to the incumbent national chairman, Comrade Augustine Egbon, at the PTD-NUPENG national secretriat in Abuja.
Comrade Egbon and other new national officers had emerged at a special delegates conference for the PTD branch of NUPENG held in Ibadan, Oyo State capital last October.
The fresh election was sequel to the judgement of Justice Bashar Alkali of the National lndustrial Court of Nigeria in the Yenagoa Judicial Division, Bayelsa State, which nullified the election of Petroleum Tanker Drivers branch of NUPENG held on June 30, 2O22 in Ibadan.
Affirming the support of the former national chairmen, Comrade John Ossai noted that NUPENG would continue to play its leadership position in the affairs of the PTD Branch.
He also appealed to unit chairmen to continue to cooperate with the national leadership under Comrade Egbon.
Ossai stated: “We are proud of the election that our mother union, NUPENG handled, which produced the new leadership. We have to pay a courtesy call on our new national chairman.
I want to use this opportunity to call on all the branch unit of PTD nationwide to pledge their loyalty to the new leadership. The fight by those calling themselves faction is uncalled for and driven by self interest. We won’t accept it. NUPENG and PTD is one.
“Today, the Union is more refined. The PTD won’t break away from NUPENG for any reason. I am appealing to all the members to be law abiding and be loyal to their national chairman and NUPENG. That’s the flag we have been flying.”
On his part, Comrade Tijani Zubair described the new national chairman as a bridge builder and peace maker whose leadership would address the demands of the Union for better welfare for tanker drivers and good roads for haulage of petroleum products
Zubair cautioned against call for strike by the aggrieved group who claimed to be a faction as he noted that any strike action would amount to a deliberate plot to sabotage the Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration.
He said, “We are here to pay solidarity visit to Comrade Egbon. He is an honest chairman who worked with me while I was a national chairman. He is a peacemaker I am sure he will solve many of the problems we are facing like bad federal roads and good welfare package for tanker Drivers.
“My appeal to those who aren’t happy with the election, they should forgive and forget. They should give peace a chance, we are one family. They should give support to the new leadership. The government of Nigeria under President Bola Tinubu needs peace and if their is no peace, investment won’t come to Nigeria.”
In his remarks, the new national chairman of PTD-NUPENG, Comrade Egbon thanked the former national chairmen for the visit.
He assured them that his leadership would continue to cement the existing warm relationship with NUPENG and avoid any action that could threathen the peace in the downstream sector of the oil industry.
He said, “Today is a day that I can say I am very happy because I can feel the support of our ex -national chairmen of this union. These are the people we served. They were there in Ibadan when we held our election.
“This shows that all the past national chairmen of PTD are with us. Without NUPENG, PTD can’t stand. We aren’t going back, in our support, no matter what. NUPENG is our father. For me, I will follow the footsteps of our past leaders. We are going to work together.
“We also pledge out total support to Bola Tinubu government. We won’t allow any group to sabotage this government under the guise of being members of PTD- NUPENG.
“We will not sabotage this government, anybody that calls for strike in PTD or NUPENG illegally, we will hand them over to law enforcement agencies. We will never support any illegality.”
Other former national chairmen who pledged loyalty to the new chairman included Comrades Mudashiru Azeez, Timothy Ogbu, and Salmon Akanni Oladiti.