Petroleum Tanker Drivers, PTD, branch of the Nigeria Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, the weekend in Benin City, Edo State, gave the Federal Government a January 15 deadline to remove containerized trucks from all access roads to tank farms in Apapa, failing which members would withdraw their services nationwide.
At a briefing after its Branch Executive Council, BEC, meeting, Otunba Salmon Oladiti, National Chairman of PTD, said but for the promise not to disrupt fuel supplies and inflict pains on Nigerians during the yuletide, the union would have ordered members to down tools and begin an indefinite strike this December.
Oladiti lamented that the containerized trucks had become untouchable and had taken over all the access roads to the tank farms, forcing tanker drivers from different parts of the country to stay on the road for a minimum of three weeks to load products.
He stated that the leadership of PTD met with government officials at the Presidency a few weeks ago where the government promised to ensure seamless distribution of petroleum products across the nook and cranny of the country.
He insisted that after the yuletide, the union would declare industrial action if the access roads to the tank farms were not free from containerized trucks.
Otunba Oladiti said the efforts of the Federal Task Force set up to decongest Lagos roads of trucks had not yielded needed results because the containerized trucks were treated like sacred cows.
He said: “The problem of gridlocks on the roads, particularly at Coconut and Tin Can Island axes, persists, forcing our members to spend weeks before loading petroleum products from the Lagos Tank farm, a situation that is unacceptable to us.
”We have written several letters to all appropriate authorities on this serious matter. NUPENG President has equally addressed press conferences and issued press statements on the issues, yet the situation, rather than improving, is getting worse.
”Definitely, we cannot continue like this as it appears that there are some powerful and untouchable individuals in the Nigeria Ports Authority, NPA, that are frustrating every effort of government at finding a solution to the issue.
“The containerized trucks have completely taken all the access roads to the tank farms. They are being treated as sacred cows and untouchables by NPA. We have our members coming from all parts of the country, from Sokoto, Maiduguri, to the South East, South West and other parts of the country to load fuel in Lagos.
”But because they cannot access the tank farms, they stay on the road for two to three weeks. We have assured the government that we will ensure the seamless distribution of products to all parts of the country during this festive period.
“However, we are giving the government up till January 15, 2020, to remove all the containerized trucks on the access roads to the tank farms. If after January 15, 2020, the trucks are still occupying the access roads to the tank farms, our members will withdraw our services until the roads are free for our members to load products.”
