The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) have rejected the Federal Government’s plan to sell its stakes in Joint Venture (JV) oil assets and amend the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
Speaking at a joint world press conference on Tuesday in Abuja, PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo, warned that both moves would destabilise the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.) and endanger the country’s economic future.
Osifo said government’s stakes in JV oil assets—currently between 55 and 60 per cent—belong to all Nigerians and should not be sold for “quick cash.”
“Selling these assets will mortgage Nigeria’s future, undermine foreign exchange earnings, weaken the naira, and deepen budget deficits,” he said.
He added that the planned sale would also threaten the welfare of oil workers, noting that NUPENG and PENGASSAN constitute the largest workforce in NNPC Ltd.
On the proposed PIA amendments, Osifo faulted plans to remove the Ministry of Petroleum from NNPC’s ownership structure and transfer control solely to the Ministry of Finance.
“This is an aberration. Globally, national oil companies report to petroleum ministries. We will resist any attempt to alter this structure,” he said.
Osifo urged the government to instead prioritise increasing crude oil production, stressing that Nigeria could boost output from 1.7 million to over 3 million barrels per day with the right investment climate.
NUPENG President, Williams Akporeha, also criticised the government’s approach, insisting that the sale of national oil assets was not in the interest of Nigerians.
“They told us subsidy removal would free up funds. We supported it with the hope of better infrastructure and security. Now, with more revenue, why sell the little assets Nigeria still has?” Akporeha asked.
He said the move would erode investor confidence, warning that frequent amendments to the PIA—barely two years after its passage—were premature and damaging.
“Every oil-producing nation has a strong national oil company to protect its interests. Why should Nigeria strip NNPC of that role?” he said.
Both unions called on President Bola Tinubu to intervene and halt the planned asset sales and PIA amendments, warning that the measures would harm Nigeria’s economy, its oil sector, and future generations.