M[b]afia rules oil sector –FG
, Name them -Labour
From UBONG UKPONG, Abuja
Thursday, November 12, 2009

[/b]

Labour and Productivity Minister, Prince Adetokunbo Ademola has sensationally revealed why the nation’s downstream oil sector may remain comatose.

In his submission at the resumed meeting between the Federal Government and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to find a common ground on the planned deregulation of the downstream sector of the oil and gas industry on Wednesday, Ademola said government was aware of a mafia group in the sector which was unprepared to see the nation refining petroleum products in the country as they were the beneficiaries of the corruption in the sector.
“We are in a very serious trouble if we don’t change this regime.

Though, it will cause pains, when you look back at it later you will appreciate,” he had argued at the meeting held in Labour House, Abuja.
However, the Labour chieftains who said government was celebrating its failures demanded that it should name the mafias in the nation’s oil sector if it was actually interested in fighting the corruption in the sector.
Deputy President of the NLC, Comrade Irabor, said they had no confidence in the government as it had decided to re-circle the discussion without going direct to the point, adding that, “we have not seen any new thing in what government is saying. If we see any later, we will look into it.”

General Secretary of the Congress, Comrade John Odah, said they needed the government team to go beyond some of the arguments paraded by government because the arguments over the last 25 years.
Various Labour chieftains present at the meeting, who submitted that deregulation was not the solution to the nation’s problems in the sector urged government to quickly embark on projects that would alleviate the sufferings of the people get the refineries to work and bring the corrupt people in the oil sector to book rather than continue to talk about deregulation.

With the federal government and Labour adopting extreme positions with clear indications that none of them was willing to shift grounds, tempers flared and the meeting almost turned into a shouting match.
Meanwhile, the NLC has set up a ten-man committee headed by its vice president, Peter Adeyemi. The committee is to look at the union’s stand against that of the federal government, examine the way deregulation is done in other OPEC countries and what implications it would have on Nigerians.

Finance Minister, Mansur Mukhtar, who led government’s delegation had made laborious but futile effort to explain why Labour should support government’s deregulation plans but his submissions Labour held were quite unconvincing and unacceptable.

Labour, which had often stressed that deregulation was synonymous with increase in prices of petrol became very irked by explanations of the Finance minister, who bluntly declared that the deregulation was inevitable and that the price of petrol would certainly go up much higher than it is presently after the exercise.
“I cannot guarantee… nobody will guarantee that prices will not rise, prices will rise but after sometime it will also come down,” Muktar said.

Stressing that they had been involved in several fruitless meetings with Labour, the minister urged that the key thing was to see how they could narrow their differences and see how to move the country forward.
In his submission also, minister of state for Petroleum, Odein Ajumogobia, who acknowledged that a good system was for government to build its own refineries and refine locally said government was however fade up with putting over N1.3 trillion into the importation of over 18 million litres of petrol petrol daily for consumption in the country.

Stressing that government was going to pay about N600billion at the end of the year for petrol subsidy, Ajumogobia who regretted that out of this amount not up to N200billion would be spent on petrol, disclosed that a chunk sum of the money goes into other expenses.


http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2009/nov/12/national-12-11-2009-001.htm

its not just the Mafia----there are lots of illegal oil bunkers.

I feel these government are just chasing shadows. If there is any cartel in this oil business, then name them. If they refuse to, then, can such a government be regarded as genuine govt?. How much is N600b compared to what is stolen from the nation's coffers on daily basis?. Can the refineries work? If no, why not sell them to private owners, and let us see whether they will not work? Better still, sell it to the cartel, and let us see how they will sabotage their own refineries. There is a way out, so let explore it!.

This claim reminds one of Fela's sayings about existence of "Unknown Government".

selingel:

I feel these government are just chasing shadows. If there is any cartel in this oil business, then name them. If they refuse to, then, can such a government be regarded as genuine govt?. How much is N600b compared to what is stolen from the nation's coffers on daily basis?. Can the refineries work? If no, why not sell them to private owners, and let us see whether they will not work? Better still, sell it to the cartel, and let us see how they will sabotage their own refineries. There is a way out, so let explore it!.

Good talk. But let me tell you, this government will never mention them, because they are the same people parading the corridor of power.

Enjoyment1:

Good talk. But let me tell you, this government will never mention them, because they are the same people parading the corridor of power.

Then the war on corruption is useless if some people are above the law!.

Once again, I can not imagine that a whole government can admit there is a mafia in the oil sector, which means they know them, yet, they can not mention their names.

Na so we am!
90% of those in govt in Abuja are into oil bunkering in some way or the other. The same as a huge percentage of ex-Generals and ex-govt people.

Just before Hilary Clinton came here, she made two piercing statements; (1) foreigners know more about Nigeria than Nigerians do and (2) 90% of our oil money benefits only 1% of Nigeria's 140 million!

The mafia can't be too hard to find, in fact we should have more than enough zeal to hunt them out. . . But many waters have flowed under the bridge

Beaf:

Na so we am!
90% of those in govt in Abuja are into oil bunkering in some way or the other. The same as a huge percentage of ex-Generals and ex-govt people.

Just before Hilary Clinton came here, she made two piercing statements; (1) foreigners know more about Nigeria than Nigerians do and (2) 90% of our oil money benefits only 1% of Nigeria's 140 million!

The mafia can't be too hard to find, in fact we should have more than enough zeal to hunt them out. . . But many waters have flowed under the bridge

In the Nigerian kind of system, can you hunt the same person who is giving you cut in oil bunkering?

Yes, simple, Name them and punish them, why would you punish us for the crimes of your friends. Bunch of idiots

This cartel is the strongest anywhere in the world. It will very easy for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for this cartel to be dismantled. Instead of that, they will move into the next phase called, deregulation, which means more money. This cartel is so full of long term power and connection with the power that be. They can make or break any govt. Amongst those in this cartel are NNPC staff, Otedola of Zenon oil etc. The list is endless.

aisha2:

Yes, simple, Name them and punish them, why would you punish us for the crimes of your friends. Bunch of idiots

Honestly, how I wished they know the wishes of Nigerians. That is why they will never stop buying bullet proof cars.

****muse***** like we never knew before

How stupid do they think we are, Its just like a Landlord whose tenants are worried by armed robbers and the landlord knows the robbers instead of intensifying his security and work closely with the police to catch the thieves, he feel the best way to curb the robbers is to increase house rent, because in his stupid mind when he removes his own contribution for security the robbers will stop. Idiots, Intellectually leaders, bunch of thieves. I feel like wearing a bomb vest and seeing that stupid Rilwan Lukman

This country stinks!. Tufia (spits out).

citizenY:

If I were Yar'adua, I will first of all sack this minister of labour. Police ,EFCC, ICPC,SSS

or whatever should interrogate him to produce credible evidence of his statements.

Ministers are supposed to advise the president. What is the use of the weekly meetings of

the FEC. I expect that these meetings are mainly for a regular review of the state of affairs

in the country? I am beginning to feel that they only meet to ratify contracts and nothing else.

What they do at that FEC is total rubbish. None of their decisions have affected the common man.

They are just taking us 4 a ride. Let 'em enjoy while it lasts

citizenY:

If I were Yar'adua, I will first of all sack this minister of labour. Police ,EFCC, ICPC,SSS

or whatever should interrogate him to produce credible evidence of his statements.

Ministers are supposed to advise the president. What is the use of the weekly meetings of

the FEC. I expect that these meetings are mainly for a regular review of the state of affairs

in the country? I am beginning to feel that they only meet to ratify contracts and nothing else.

They have committed all their resources to chasing El- Rufai and Ribadau, simple logic says when they is a crime find and punish the criminals, what kind of animals do we have as Ministers and Leaders? What kind of rubbish is this, why should i pay more for fuel because you can not account for money for repairs of refineries and insists of collecting kicknacks from your cronies who import fuel. Why should i pay more for fuel when you have ppromised me during 11 fuel pprice increment that i will benefit from better power supply and schools, 10 years later and 11 fuel price increment later, I still produce my own light, i run a small office on 48 000 fuel every month, Schools are getting worse, hospitals still have obsolete euipments, why should i believe you when you dont know how to do your job. Idiots

^^^^^ thats more like it aisha---- let out ur anger

Goats and pigs, Waste of sperm. Idiots, buffons. Half of my income already goes to fueling my Genertor for work after promising to use the money from previous partial deregulation to give me light, Goats irreesponsible fools

aisha2:

Goats and pigs, Waste of sperm. Idiots, buffons. Half of my income already goes to fueling my Genertor for work after promising to use the money from previous partial deregulation to give me light, Goats irreesponsible fools

Na wa o! Abeg take am easy o. Channel d energy of ur anger towards ur determination of achieving s/thing 2day rather than wasting it on those corrupt politicians

The greed of the people in government will not allow them to do the right thing, they'll see the truth and turn the other way round. Tell me how much it takes to fix the Refineries, if not that the mafias are the one crying that there are mafias?

I weep for Nigerian!

@ aisha: one cannot focus on infrastructure in Nigeria esp. if ure a small non-profit----- u motivate urself by focusing on the goals, milestones, and people u seek to help.

I feel ur pain

posakosa:

@ aisha: one cannot focus on infrastructure in Nigeria esp. if ure a small non-profit----- u motivate urself by focusing on the goals, milestones, and people u seek to help.

I feel your pain

Please find something else to do, does following me around not bore you? I would have given you aa job but you have too much negativity and too much intellectual and physical laziness to work. Yes and Nigerias problems according to you can only be solved by coming to nairaland and complain and sit down and take no action no matter how little abi? What I do is how i make my environment better in my little way, complaining alone just does not cut it. I hope your brain is large enough to comprehend this little point

scottN:

Na wa o! Abeg take am easy o. Channel d energy of your anger towards your determination of achieving s/thing 2day rather than wasting it on those corrupt politicians

Dont worry about me, I will be quiet busy today, it just gets really annoying sometimes, the display of outright stupidity

& d 

aisha don dey kolo---frustration dey catch am----shey u never find husband ? I can be your chris brown----unlike Wihanna, i go just khonk u for head.

aisha2:

Dont worry about me, I will be quiet busy today, it just gets really annoying sometimes, the display of outright stupidity

lol It's ok 2 get annoyed but just don't let it cloud your judgment.

I pray that my australian visa matures fast, so I can leave this unworkable nation called Nigeria.

Until we break the monopoly existing in this country, the elite will continue to smile to the bank. Let the govt take the bold step and name the cartel and its members.

I am the head of the Oil Mafia, Don Corleone. Mafia ko, pirate ni. Stupid and irresponsible government, can't they just re-evaluate the whole process and do the necessary things? Who are the players in the industry, are they not eating from the same plates with our moronic government functionaries?

pcicero:

I am the head of the Oil Mafia, Don Corleone. Mafia ko, pirate ni. Stupid and irresponsible government, can't they just re-evaluate the whole process and do the necessary things? Who are the players in the industry, are they not eating from the same plates with our moronic government functionaries?

Good talk. They know what to do, but just will not do it.