NUPENG besieges Lagos Assembly over unpaid N224m debt

By Lanre Adesanya

The SouthWest Wing of the Nigerian Union Of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) today made good their threat on the state government secretariat, sequel to claim of N224m it owed the body.

The group of protesters led by the chairman of NUPENG Comrade Tokunbo Korodo early today laid siege on the entrance axis linking the Lagos State Assembly Complex and the Governor’s office,the heavy presence of security operatives could not deter the NUPENG agitators, as they held their grounds till they were attended to by Honourable Segun Olulade, member representing Epe 1 constituency in the house.

Olulade having received the group’s petition which seeks to call the attention of the Governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode to the need to pay the N224m the state government allegedly owes NUPENG,forwarded it to the Speaker’s office for prompt attention.

It will be recalled that the protest was further incensed by the failure of the government to pay the said amount, Korodo in a recent report disclosed that the N224 million was for payment for the supply of diesel and kerosene to the state government for execution of direct labour projects in Ojodu between October 2014 and May 2015.

The chairman said the contract was financed by Skye Bank and the bank had been asking for repayment of the loan.The failure of the government to come to terms with the contractual agreement, NUPENG threatens fuel scarcity will resurface in Lagos State in particular.

According to Korodo,we are pleading with Lagosians to assist us to prevail on our Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode to respect the business agreement,” he said.Korodo, however, said that if the state government continue to be silent over the matter after the picketing, the union would be left with no option than to embark on indefinite strike.

“If we are provoked further, we will down tools because injury to one member is injury to all members,” he said.