Fuel subsidy withdrawal and the plot against NLC, Ajaero

Steve Nwabuko

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent first statement that “Subsidy Is Gone” is not meant to please Nigerians but targeted at engaging NLC to a bloody duet that may break up and weaken the Labour movement in Nigeria and sustain the entrenched criminal allocation of Nigeria’s oil revenues to the rich in perpetuity.

What are the issues in subsidy withdrawal ?

Removal of government interference and funding of oil and gas operations.
Increase in the price of Petroleum products.
Deregulation of the downstream oil and gas sector.
Stoppage of importation of Petroleum products into Nigeria.
Reinventing Nigeria’s moribund refineries.
Deconstructing the dollarisation of Nigeria’s oil and gas transactions from import bills.

Who are the operators of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector?

There are essentially three major operators in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector namely:

NNPCL.

International Oil Companies (IOC’S).

Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN).

Whereas NNPCL is the sole importer of petroleum products, with some accredited companies, the IOC’s operate at the onshore platforms for crude exports whilst IPMAN functions at local retail petroleum products dispensing.

NNPCL imports refined petroleum products from the home affiliates of IOC’s operating in Nigeria and this covert interface bears the imprimatur of what is called subsidy as hideously represented as Commission or Brokerages enshrined in transactions bureaucracy of feigned importation of petroleum products into Nigeria, preferably referred to as Arbitrage by NNPCL goons.
NNPCL has found it convenient not to fix Nigeria’s four refineries in past 30 years in preference for criminal importation of petroleum products and spending humongous amounts in ill fated Turnaround Maintenance(TAM) services while paying humongous remuneration to workers of moribund refineries in Nigeria.
Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, former Governor of Kaduna state once warned in 2017 that, “If we don’t kill NNPC, then NNPC will kill Nigeria”.
Nigeria seems to have arrived at the truth of that unfortunate assertion, with all the four refineries not working, Dangote refinery not working but NNPCL dishing out new prices of petroleum products in anticipation of a futures market that is neither here no there.

Joe Ajaero’s Storm Burster.
The unassuming soft spoken new NLC President in Joe Ajaero looks very knowledgeable, poised and prepared to take on NNPCL GMD conspiracy by asking pertinent questions:
Who is subsidising what?
Who are the importers of petroleum products into Nigeria?
What are they paid for, how and why?
What is swap arrangement meant for?
Where is the N250billion CBN provision for funding Converter Gas Model?

NLC declaration of nationwide strike action will facilitate the rise of Nigerians to question, rebuke and take over NNPCL or the government working in cahoots with NNPCL may divide, discredit and destroy NLC with a view to sustaining Nigeria’s dubious institutional decay.
We remember the strike action of Ovie Frank Kokori of NUPENG and how he was run out of office by FG into self exile.
Very recently, we witnessed the bifurcation of ASUU under Prof Emmanuel Osodeke by FG and the registration of rival unknown academic unions to spite ASUU and break it’s rank and file.
That same government is in power today and has promised continuity.

How far will NLC go in this impending strike?

Given that NNPCL is not bothered about oil theft, or fixing our moribund refineries, or clamping down oil bunkerers, or opening their books for investigation, it is trite knowledge that this declared strike action will run into murky waters and the government may push for the arrest of Joe Ajaero and his executive members once the latter opens the Pandora box of NNPCL heinous operations over the years.
It should not be lost on NLC that politicians have taken over NNPCL as former staff of NNPC having amassed much wealth have switched profession from oil and gas to political office holding.
Some former NNPC staffers have become state Governors, many are in the National Assembly as senators and House of Rep’s members whilst the remaining are chairmen of several political parties.

The conspiracy against the Nigerian people over oil price increase is one huge confrontation comparable to the stolen mandate of the February 25, 2023 general elections in which INEC is denying the use of BVAS as proper exhibit before the court of law.
Beyond strike action, NLC must set up a very strong legal team to sue NNPC on the following grounds:
Failure to fix Nigeria’s four refineries in past thirty years;
Account for all the monies spent on Turnaround Maintenance without result;
Name the main importers of petroleum products into Nigeria and how they are paid;
Explain why Nigeria’s crude production quota fell from 2.5 million barrels per day to 1.02 million barrels per day;
Account for cash calls to FG and remittances to federation account in past 30 years;
Determine the appropriate owners of NNPCL and eligibility for Board membership;
Determine whether NNPC has the right to fix prices of petroleum products in a free market economy and demand for the sacking of Melee Kyari NNPCL- led Board for effluxion of time and change of management structure by reason of new incorporation.

Finally, Joe Ajaero must be fully prepared for a life threatening journey at the beginning of this strike action coupled with the political instability in Nigeria arising from nationwide insecurity and Presidential election fraud case before the tribunal.
A legal action against NNPCL is in line with the rule of law and fundamental rights of Nigerians to seek justice from a criminal enterprise called petroleum sector reforms.

Steve Nwabuko