By Eberechi Obinagwam
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has expressed worry over the ongoing anti-democratic attitude of the All Progressives Congress (APC) federal government of Nigeria.
PENGASSAN President, Ndukaku M. Ohaeri, stated this in a New Year message tagged, “Nigeria’s Democracy Must Be Saved: A Call to Reason by All.”
He said that the association observed the unfolding events with utter amazement and therefore called for a reversal of the trend as a responsible and critical stakeholder in the Nigeria project.
“In particular is the very disturbing emerging trend of disobedience to court orders, clamp down on media establishments, vagrant arrests of journalists, and social crusaders on flimsy reasons.
“Also worrisome is the deliberate distribution and propagation of inciting, provocative and misleading messages and fake news by some disgruntled elements in the society capable of causing unrest and civil disobedience.
“It is our inspired assessment that this trend if not checked portends a grave danger to our nascent democracy.
“We are also greatly disturbed that the democratic experience we laboured fortuitously for during the military era with other Labour Unions and the Civil Liberties Organizations is gradually taking a dive towards the very issues we resisted, to the point of paying the supreme price as cost for the struggle in enthroning this democracy.
“It will therefore be irresponsible and unpatriotic for us to stand aloof and watch while the tenets of democracy is being eroded on a daily basis by those we collectively gave our mandates to represent us.
“Though PENGASSAN has identified the genuine steps taken by the Federal Government in addressing the myriads of economic challenges facing the nation and have severally applauded these efforts such as the institutional reforms, Port reforms, financial prudence and anti-corruption campaigns, transparency in the operations of the petroleum downstream industry. Nevertheless, we believe the economic renaissance must thrive under an atmosphere of freedom and the rule of law.
“The core fundamentals of modern democracy is the rule of law; without it, there is no democracy. No nation worth its existence will undermine this essential component of a free society.”
“PENGASSAN therefore advises for restraint by the various security and law enforcement agencies with regards to potential human right abuses and utter disregard to judicial pronouncements and avoid the reoccurrence of Col Sambo Dasuki (rtd) and Mr. Omoyele Sowore episode in our political clime and nationhood. We also demand that the Judiciary should henceforth discharge their constitutional responsibilities within the dictates of the Rule of Law and for posterity.
“We encourage the security agencies to seek ways of mitigating the rising wave of insecurity across the Nation. The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and the Department of State Security (DSS) should explore partnership and collaborative exchanges with the Labour Unions to curb the seemingly insurmountable threats to lives and properties occasioned by the endless incidences of kidnapping, communal violence, highway robbery and other politically motivated crimes.
“It is based on our belief in the Nigeria project that has led to the efforts made by our association in ensuring stability in the Oil and Gas industry in the last few years. This has boosted investors’ confidence as well as ensured steady revenue earnings for the Nation. We therefore call on every stakeholder to contribute their quota in building a stronger Nation where justice, truth and equity reigns.”
