JUST-IN: Court Stops PENGASSAN’s Nationwide Strike

The National Industrial Court sitting successful Abuja has connected Monday, issued an interim bid stopping the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) from continuing with its nationwide concern action.

PENGASSAN has embarked upon onslaught connected Monday to protestation the alleged sack of astir 800 workers of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals.

The presiding judge, Justice Emmanuel Sublim, who granted the bid connected Monday, said the onslaught was meant to disrupt the operations by cutting crude and state supplies to the refinery.

Justice Sublim held that the onslaught was susceptible of causing superior harm to the nation’s economy, truthful ordered the Association to halt the onslaught forthwith.

The ruling followed an ex-parte exertion filed by the Refinery’s counsel, Mr. George Ibrahim, SAN.

In the aforesaid vein, the tribunal arsenic restrained cardinal regulatory bodies comprising Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) from enforcing immoderate directive by PENGASSAN to halt crude lipid and state proviso to the refinery.

Justice Sublim said the tribunal agreed with the Refinery’s submission that the onslaught could origin irreparable harm if not promptly addressed.

The tribunal further directed that the restraining bid and suit beryllium served connected each defendants without delay. The substance has been adjourned till October 13 for proceeding of the question connected notice.

Meanwhile, the enactment of Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) has thrown its value down PENGASSAN.

In its connection sent to LEADERSHIP connected Monday, ASCSN President, Comrade Shehu Mohammed, expressed full solidarity with the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) and PENGASSAN successful condemning the unjust and anti-labour practices reportedly carried retired by the absorption of the Refinery.

“The arbitrary dismissal of workers for exercising their law close to freely subordinate and beryllium to a commercialized national is simply a gross usurpation of Section 40 of the Nigerian Constitution and a nonstop breach of Nigeria’s obligations nether International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions.

“Such acts are unacceptable and cannot beryllium tolerated successful a democracy. We,
therefore, basal shoulder-to-shoulder with TUC and PENGASSAN successful demanding the contiguous reinstatement of each affected workers conscionable arsenic we enactment the telephone for an autarkic probe into the refinery’s anti-worker practices,” Mohammed said.

He further warned that if the substance was not resolved wrong a tenable clip frame, ASCSN whitethorn beryllium compelled to articulation the nationalist enactment successful afloat force, successful defence of workers’ rights and to guarantee that justness is done.