NUPENG Denies Leadership Crisis in Petroleum Tanker Drivers Branch

The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers(NUPENG) says there is no leadership tussle within its Petroleum TankersDrivers (PTD) branch. In a statement on Friday, the NUPENG addressed claimsattributed to Humble Obinna, a former chairman of its PTD branch, SOBAZ unit,Calabar. NUPENG said Obinna had alleged that Williams Akporeha andAfolabi Olawale, president and general secretary of the union, respectively,were planning to create industrial crisis in the oil sector through “illegalattempt to conduct PTD Branch Zonal and Units elections in February and March2026”. The union said Obinna further claimed that the plannedelections violated PTD bylaws and the NUPENG constitution.. According to the statement, a member of the nationalexecutive committee of NUPENG confirmed that Obinna had been suspended from theunion. NUPENG said he and Lucky Osesua, former national chairman ofPTD-NUPENG, removed by a national industrial court ruling in Bayelsa, arefacing charges before a federal high court in Abuja. “These are individuals who have been suspended by the Unionfor acts capable of casting aspersions on the image of NUPENG,” the statementreads. “So, what rights do they have to talk about activities ofthe Union? Until they sort out their pending criminal trial, we don’t want toengage them as we don’t want to be seen to be meddling in the judicial process.We hold the judiciary in high esteem “We want to assure members of the public that there is nothreat to the existing peace in the midstream and downstream sectors comingfrom NUPENG. “Our genuine members remain law-abiding and would notpartake in any activity that would undermine the economy.” The union also called on security agencies to closelymonitor the actions of the suspended members, warning that their threats coulddisrupt industrial harmony in the oil sector. NUPENG described the individuals as “impostors” who cannotrepresent the union.

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