Nelson Ekujimi, Lagos
March 10, 2016 – Nigeria has always been derogatorily referred to as the theatre of the absurd not because we have physical or mental defects which differentiates us from the rest of humanity, but because of the way we conduct our activities in our environment which defies logic and rationality and puts a question mark on our sense of being as members of the human community.
At every point in time in our political journey as a country, individuals or group of persons always engage in activities and actions that give credence to this appellation of Nigeria which is not complimentary of us as a people.
Just yesterday, news broke in the media about the restructuring or unbundling of Nigeria’s cash cow, the NNPC as promised by the President Muhammadu Buhari administration and which was announced by the Minister of State for petroleum resources and NNPC Group Managing Director (GMD) Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, of its split into seven units for greater productivity and efficiency and for it to be run profitably like national oil corporations in other parts of the world.
Meanwhile as part of the fallout of the restructuring or unbundling, the minister noted that Nigeria will stop importing petroleum products in 18 months time, as he revealed plans by oil major companies to establish new refineries, just as he restated the government’s commitment in ensuring that the existing state refineries function optimally.
However, Nigerians who are still reeling from the trauma and pain of the nationwide fuel scarcity which has become a national embarrassment, were shocked and dumbfounded to read also in the news that the two labour unions in the oil industry, NUPENG and PENGASSON had commenced a total strike by shutting down NNPC services in response to the restructuring or unbundling of the corporation.
As a student of industrial relations which deals with the industrial environment or the work place, one has searched through relevant sections of labour law or reading through books on industrial relations and is unable to find any chapter or sections of the law which gives workers or employees the right to call for an industrial dispute, just because an employer wants to reorganize his business.
An indisputable fact about the industrial environment is that, it is governed by laws which are set by employers with inputs from employees through industrial democracy called collective bargaining. According to our labour laws, an industrial dispute can only occur when there is a violation of the terms and conditions of employment by either parties and even if it occurs, it is imperative on both parties to be responsible enough to amicably resolve it, lest it generate to a strike action which should be the last resort.
It is within the constitutional right of an employer to determine how he wants to run his business and an abuse and breach of the laws for workers to down tool under the condition that they were not consulted or that they disagree. What should be of concern to any responsible and responsive workers union is to ensure that the rights of workers as enshrined in the terms and conditions of employment are not violated by an action of the employer.
The employer can at any point in time, in the life of his business, expand, merge, restructure, redesign, reorganize or even close shop by retrenching workers, but in laying off workers, he must ensure that all due entitlements of the sacked workers are paid which should be the primary concern of the workers union whose existence is predicated on the welfare of members.
Thus, this latest strike is to say the least, absurd, insensitive, unpatriotic, an assault on the collective intelligence of the Nigerian people and a violation of the principles and laws governing the work environment.
One recollects that only recently, the same workers unions in the petroleum industry threatened to embark on a strike action if the government removes subsidy on petroleum products. Without doubt, we are all aware of how the fuel subsidy regime became a conduit pipe of corruption for enriching a negligible few at the expense of national development and peoples welfare and the threat of strike action against government action makes you wonder whose interest the unions are serving, is it that of the workers and the Nigerian people or the economic saboteurs who have been benefiting from the fuel subsidy scam?
One must also remind Nigerians to take note and be wary of workers union who are unpatriotic and always quick to want to hold the country to ransom when vested interests are threatened but will not go on strike on issues bordering on the welfare of the generality of Nigerian workers and people. Or is it out of place for the unions to exert pressure on the government to ensure speedy prosecution of indicted fuel subsidy funds recipients whose case is still in court since 2012 as their own contribution to the anti corruption war?
Thus, the time has come for the generality of Nigerian people to come together and rise up against agents of darkness who threaten our collective interest in re-emphasizing our derogatory description as a theatre of the absurd by calling these misguided and selfish interest seeking workers unions to order.
