Stop destroying small refining sites, NULGE berates FG, Navy action

The leadership of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), on Wednesday, cautioned the Federal Government and the Nigerian Navy to stop destroying some refining sites it tagged “illegal” in the Niger Delta region of the country.

The union specifically called on President Bola Tinubu to prevail on the Nigerian Navy to stop the action, arguing that destroying those sites has no benefits whatsoever for the country’s oil and gas sector as well as for Nigerians at large.

Comrade Ambali Olatunji, President of NULGE, gave this caution when addressing journalists at Labour House, Abuja shortly after the National Executive Council meeting of the union.

Olatunji maintained that instead of destroying those refining sites, they should be licensed properly, mandate them to pay taxes and employ young Nigerians in order to create job opportunities.

The union leader, while fielding questions from journalists said, “NEC-in-Session call on Federal Government to consider licensing modular refineries to have the capacity to refine crude oil, this in turn creates employment and rural development in Nigeria.

“Succinctly, we recommend that they should allow modular refineries to be licensed. Some of these modular refineries are in existence and they are destroying them.

“We know that there operation is below standard, but why can’t we use Standard Organisation of Nigeria to look into it, register them, standardize the procedures, train the handlers and allow them to pay taxes to the government, employ workers, generate additional energy and shore up our GDP and forex reserves. That’s the way to go.

“If the multinationals are leaving the country, what the government cannot do, an individual is doing it in Nigeria but we’re not encouraging them. Where are we going? If we can work on those areas, coupled with minimum wage, the effects of fuel subsidy removal will go down.”

The NULGE President also cautioned the federal government from embarking on the purchase of Compress Natural Gas (CNG) buses, arguing that creating conversion centres nationwide is the way to go because of Nigerians already have their private cars.

He added, “The NEC-in-Session take note of the hardship resulted from fuel subsidy removal and hereby call the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to mitigate the effect by creating Compress Natural Gas (CNG) Centres, a minimum of 3 Centres per State across the nation at a subsidized rate whereby motorists can have their petrol consuming vehicles converted.”