OpeOluwani Akintayo
Lagos — Petroleum truck drivers under the aegis of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers, PTD; Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners, NARTO; and the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, have agreed to put off striking actions following an intervention by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, NNPC Ltd.
The agreement was reached on Thursday in Abuja sequel to a stakeholders meeting
The drivers had threatened to embark on a nationwide strike action over the non-rehabilitation of the 21 critical roads captured in the N621 billion NNPC Road Infrastructure Tax Credit Scheme.
Others in attendance at the meeting included representatives of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA); and the NNPC.
During the meeting, the NNPC provided updates on the current status of the road construction and rehabilitation projects under the road infrastructure tax credit scheme and assured the stakeholders (NUPENG, NARTO and PTD) that the funding earmarked for the 21 critical roads will be applied for the intended purpose only.
To allay the fears of the stakeholders, NNPC and all parties commit to working together in the monitoring of the road projects.
The stakeholders requested for completion of the ongoing discussion on the review of the freight rates to cover operational costs and highlighted the precarious situation that truck owners face in the light of current economic realities.
NMDPRA informed the meeting that a committee has been constituted to review the rates, which includes PTD, NARTO and NUPENG in addition to other stakeholders.
All parties agreed to work expeditiously towards concluding the review of the freight rate and make recommendations to the Government.
The Authority is to advise on a definite close-out date during the week of 21st February 2022.
