COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF AN EMERGENCY MEETING OF THE NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL (NEC) OF THE NIGERIA LABOUR CONGRESS (NLC) HELD ON TUESDAY DECE

An emergency meeting of the National Executive Council (NEC) of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) held on Tuesday December 15, 2009, and considered the report of the Committee on Deregulation it set up on November 12, 2009. After due deliberations on the report, NEC arrived at the following resolutions:

1. That NEC-in-session has taken note of all the submissions made to Congress organs and to the Committee on Deregulation.
2. That NEC is convinced that the petroleum sector needs a holistic restructuring in order to ensure stability of production, distribution and even pricing.
3. NEC also observes that corruption is endemic in the sector and immensely contributes to the problems of the sector.
4. NEC as a result of the above further resolve that while agreeing to the issue of restructuring of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry for effective delivery, it is unequivocally opposed to any increase in the prices of petroleum products and that government, as a matter of urgency, should provide an enabling environment for any meaningful restructuring and transformation to take place by ensuring that:

4.1 The existing four refineries undergo complete repairs and functioning (in full capacity).

4.2 Additional refineries, either solely-owned by the NNPC or through joint partnership with oil companies, or through private sector initiative are established to ensure that the estimated 40% petroleum products which would otherwise still be imported can be refined domestically in the country.

4.3 Regulatory agencies will have to be properly strengthened to sanction potential defaulters.

4.4 Power projections must be attained to encourage manufacturing and boost industrial growth.

4.5 Roads are fixed and railway system reactivated and put in place a viable system of mass transit system to ease free movement of people and goods across the nation.

Consequently, NEC-in-session demands that Government takes immediate steps to ensure availability of petroleum products to eliminate fuel queues across the country.

NEC sincerely believes that all of this can be achieved within twelve months if government has the will and is determined to undertake any meaningful reform.

It is pertinent at this juncture to state that NEC came to this conclusion in the interest of the Nigerian workers in particular and Nigerian people in general.

Thank you

Abdulwahed Omar John Odah

President General Secretary

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