By Victor Ahiuma-Young
MARITIME Workers Union of Nigeria, MWUN, has insisted the union would shut down the nation’s ports should the Management of Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, fail to prevail on Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, Chevron/Texaco, Agip Energy & Natural Resources and 18 other firms to pay dockworkers for tonnage handled in off-shore operations for the past three years.

Other affected firms, according to MWUN are Lammalco Nigeria Ltd, Murphy Shipping , Globestar Nigeria Ltd, Hyundai Heavy Industry Nigeria Ltd, ESSO Exploration Production Nigeria ltd,  NAOC, TIDEX , Seabulk off shore, Saipem group , Wilbross , Moni Pulo Nigeria Ltd, Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited ADDAX Petroleum Development Nigeria Ltd, Amni Petroleum, SNEPCO Ltd, Hydrodive Nig Ltd, Red Transport Nigeria Ltd and Edison Chouset offshore Ltd.

The union had recently issued a two-week ultimatum to the Management of NPA to impress it on the affected companies to pay their indebtedness to the workers or the entire ports across the country would be shut in solidarity with the dockworkers, lamented that the aggrieved workers had been passing through untold hardships and suffering.
President-General of MWUN, Comrade Nted Anthony Emmanuel, had at the briefing said though Mobil Producing, Addax Petroleum Development Nigeria, Chevron/Texaco, and Amni Petroleum had indicated interest to pay, but as at the time of this report, they had not paid.

The President-General who spoke to Vanguard on his way to Geneva, Switzerland, to attend this year’s International Labour Organisation, ILO Conference, called on stakeholders in the Maritime industry to prevail on the affected companies to pay up to avoid industrial unrest, warning once the ILO conference was over and the wages remained unpaid, the entire port would be shut down and members wages were paid.

He reiterated that NPA had the capacity to make the affected companied paid and lamented that the union had written several letters and petitions to the Minister of Transport before the current Minister as well as to the management of NPA over the issue to no avail.

The President-General of MWUN argued that NPA had the capacity to make them pay and wondered why it had refused to make them pay.

According to him: “We hereby protest over the unacceptable mode of operations of some Shipping Companies and Oil Companies engaged in off-shore discharge operations.

These companies have persistently evaded payment of dockworkers dues in their off-shore discharge in spite of repeated demands from our Union. We have also written series of letters to the Hon. Minister of Transport and the Management of Nigerian Ports Authority on this matter. It is regrettable that these companies have also disobeyed the NPA Management’s directive to them to pay the dockworkers as per the gazetted resou1ulatjon on off-shore discharge.”

“The continued denial of the payment of these dues to the dockworkers – a suffering class of workers, some of whom have died while waiting for the payment is inhuman and unacceptable .

As the Authority charged with responsibility of superintending over the Port operations, we demand that the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority enforces the directive to the companies to pay up the bills without further delay. We further wish to state that we may be forced to withdraw the services of the dockworkers from all our seaports if the payment is not made. Injury to one is injury to all.”