Refinery Workers protest maltreatment

By Chuks Peter, DELTA

Workers of warri refining and petrochemicals company WRPC, in Delta State today called on president Ahmed Bola Tinubu to what they described as injustice, workplace slavery by the management of the company.

The workers said this on Wednesday morning in a peaceful protest at the Premises of the campany, calling on the President of the federal republic of nigeria, president Ahmed Tinubu to help stop the workplace slavery and injustice given to the support staffs by management of the company.

The support staffs also called on the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), Mele Kyari to help look into their plight.

Speaking with newsman on Wednesday morning at the day three mourning protest, the lead representative of the support staffs at WRPC, Reverend Dafe Ighomitedo, said, “we are protesting against workplaces slavery, poor earnings, injustice, perceived failure of management , deprivation and short-changing , in respect to the Quick-Fix project which we have seen to ninety-five per cent (95%) completion.

Reverend Dafe said, “We have been on this issue on salary increament since 2015. We have document to show. I n 2019 this issue went to the house of assembly. All stakeholders intervain and there were promises, promises of improved salary structure.

“As we speak, management can not tender any document to show that there has been any increase in salary since 2019 after leaving the house of assembly. We decided to run this plant for the stage of aprequistic.

“We were the one running the warri refinery to ensure that the WRPC is set for operation. We ensure that we are peaceful, and we have been peaceful, the job has been going on peacefully and smotely, but so sad, we are here to mourn what is going on, which we have said enough of staff slavery.

“We have been here receiving migas salaries, We are the one that runs the plant to this point, now it’s time to start up the plant, suddenly they came and brought in retirees. Those that are 70yrs and above to be receiving one million naira in a month. Why the average salary of us here who are experience “hiries” Is hundred thousand naira.

“Nobody among us here is less than 10yrs in experience. Some are below hundred thousand naira, but we just say average is N100,000.

“We were told to be patient and allow the project to get to the stage of nearly a completion that we will get everything we want together. And we are getting closer, we have work 95℅, we are the one that put it up to this stage.

“We want to run it. We want this plant to run, we want this nation to be proud that this plant is running. But the painful thing here is that we have fix billions of naira to the facility without thinking of putting anything to those that will run the facility.

“How can you spend billions in putting the facility in order without thinking of people that will run the facility.

“You just brought your retirees who have gotten their gratuity, they have gotten their pensions and they don’t have energy anymore but though with espirence.

“But we are enejaitic people full of espirence and you say what is due to us is average of hundred thousand naira? . We say this is injustice, workplace slavery and we are saying no to it.

“Non of us here have access to medical services. We are working in an hazardous environment, hazardous plant but we don’t have access to medical Facilities.

“We don’t have hazard allowance, we don’t have transport allowance and you know what is the cost of fuel in this country today, you can see them in our points.

“So we are calling on well meaning Nigerians who are tired to see their children or their people suffering to come to our rescue.

“Respect to the ongoing quick peace projects that the nation is expecting us to come up soon which we are very optimistic that it will come up soon that is why we are here but some things are not right.

“We have been deprived of what is due to us and we decided to cry out that is why we are here today being the third day of the mourning protesting.

“This is day three of the morning protest, we don’t know how far it will go, we are seeking for intervention from the appropriate quarters as far as to the GCEO and the EVP gas stream to come to our rescue. We are receiving virtually peanut as salary.

“Should they fail to hear our cry, our next line of action is, ‘continue to cry’, we will keep pushing on till the day they will hear us. We are very objective and we are very purposeful.

“You can see we are very peaceful, we allow people to go in, work is going on. But the workers that are being enslaved we have to pulled out, ‘we say No’. ‘This is injustice’.