The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has been plunged into crisis as more than 523 members of its Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) branch accused the union’s national leadership of “undemocratic conduct” and “constitutional violations.”
In a petition to the registrar of trade unions at the ministry of labour and productivity, the group alleged that Festus Osifo, PENGASSAN’s national president, and Lumumba Okugbawa, its general secretary, had undermined internal democracy by imposing a caretaker committee on the NMDPRA branch without an election.
“As a branch under the PENGASSAN structure, we have made several efforts to engage the national leadership constructively on matters affecting our members and the proper administration of our branch in line with the constitution of our union,” the petition read.
The petitioners accused the leadership of disregarding “numerous letters and correspondences” and argued that its actions amounted to “abuse of office” and a “gross violation” of the association’s constitution.
The dispute escalated after the national leadership, via a June 27 letter, appointed a caretaker committee to manage the NMDPRA branch. The move was rejected by members who described it as “entirely wrong,” “unacceptable,” and “unconstitutional.”
Following repeated complaints, members resolved to conduct their own election but were advised by the minister of labour, in an August 15 letter, to pause while the ministry engaged all parties. Despite this intervention, members claimed the central working committee “almost immediately inaugurated the CTC,” a step they labelled “continued non-compliance and unconstitutional acts.”
The group urged federal intervention to “safeguard the integrity of trade unionism, internal democracy, and due process within PENGASSAN.”
