The Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG)
and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN)
have commended the Senate for the passage of the Petroleum Industry Governance
Bill (PIGB).
The Senate on Thursday passed the Petroleum Industry
Governance Bill, which seeks to unbundle the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation and merged its subsidiaries into a single entity.
The passage of the bill came 14 years after the original
Petroleum Industry Bill was drafted and submitted to the National Assembly.
The PIGB is one of the parts in which the long-delayed
Petroleum Industry Bill was split into after it suffered setbacks in two
consecutive legislative tenures.
The PIB seeks to overhaul the nation’s oil and gas industry,
which has been hobbled by corruption and mismanagement for decades.
The Chairman, NUPENG and PENGASSAN Petroleum Industry Bill
Committee, Mr. Chika Onuegbu, said in a statement, “This is indeed a milestone
achievement, especially when you consider that the PIGB is not an Executive
Bill.
“Also, when you consider that Nigeria has lost over N235bn
due to its inability to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill into law since the
reform in the Nigerian petroleum industry was kick-started 17 years ago.
“We, therefore, look forward to the concurrent passage of
the PIGB into law by the House of Representatives and also eventual assent by
the President of Nigeria.”
He said the unions expected the passage of other aspects of
the PIB, namely, the Petroleum Fiscal Framework Bill; Petroleum Industry Downstream
Administration Bill; the Petroleum Industry Revenue Management Framework Bill;
and the Petroleum Host Community Bill.
Onuegbu said, “The passage of the PIGB, while commendable,
will not deliver the full benefits of the intended reforms except the other
aspects of the PIB are also legislated.”
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