PENGASSAN seeks unity against COVID 19 in Nigeria
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, has urged its members in waging a war against the Coronavirus Pandemic in Nigeria.
Speaking at the just concluded at the just-concluded National Executive Council of the association in Owerri, Imo State, February 17-18, 2021, Festus Osifo, PENGASSAN President, said: “As you are aware, the Covid 19 pandemic which is in its second wave considered to be deadlier, impacted negatively on our Industry and source of income resulting in job loss, redundancy, salary cuts and legal issues between the Management and Staff of some Organizations.
“In the face of these challenging times, it is imperative that we stand together and ensure that no member is left in the cold, irrespective of the reason adduced for his or her job loss. Permit me to say that it is time to review our strategies, advocacy initiatives, and approach of engagement to re-align them with the current realities even as we strive to protect our members’ job and that of other Nigerians who may not have a platform like ours to speak for them.”
He said: “Consequently, there is a need for internal cohesion to foster greater solidarity while projecting objective perspectives on issues affecting our members. We must take control of the narratives and speak with one voice because if we fail to do so, we will continue to grapple with the unfolding scenarios in our industry where unjustifiable redundancies are the order of the day.
“This is a wake-up call to all members as the days ahead looks bleak but the good news is that if we rally around our leadership at this critical point in time, victory is not only guaranteed but assured.”
He stated: “We have seen the devastating effects of Covid 19 pandemic globally and it was with great joy that we welcome the news of the development of a vaccine to help in its control.
Sadly, no Nigerian has been vaccinated (apart from those who did so outside of Nigeria) and that leaves us with many questions begging for answers: when shall we start the vaccination in Nigeria, what is the population target to be vaccinated and what is the total budget for the vaccines? Going by the World Health Organization (WHO) advisory, every Nation is expected to vaccinate 70% of their population, and looking at Nigeria, our target population should be 140 million to achieve herd immunity, yet we have not vaccinated any single person locally.
With the spike in the number of affected persons and the casualty figures, we had expected Government to have taken seriously the delivery of some vaccines.”
He also added: “Looking at this glaring failure on the part of the Government in this regard, we demand that Government should come clean with its plan on when we shall start the vaccination locally, the budget for the vaccination, and more importantly, give a detailed account of all donations it has received in respect of Covid 19 since the outbreak of the pandemic.
This will go a long way to show how transparent it has been in the management of public funds.”
. Read the full speech below
