The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has urged Nigerians not to panic, saying it has over 32 days stock of petroleum products available for supply across the nation during the Yuletide season and beyond.

The corporation said in a statement by its spokesperson, Mr. Ohi Alegbe, that industrial action by oil workers’ unions would not dislocate the robust distribution and sale of fuel to members of the public.

Mr. Alegbe said the NNPC was in talks with the leadership of the unions, who assured them that they would not disrupt the fuel supply and distribution system as the strike was basically aimed at addressing the anti-labour issues by some of the international oil companies.

It said 17 additional petroleum laden vessels were at the Lagos port waiting to discharge to the various depots for onward distribution.

News Express reports that fuel queues have started building upin someparts of the country in the wake of the strike embarked upon yesterday by the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) to protest government’s failure to carry out Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) on the refineries and reduce pump prices of petroleum products in line with the slump in global prices of crude oil.

Other grievances include delay in the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB); non-implementation of the Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act to reflect Nigerians in management positions and expatriate quota law; appalling state of access roads to refineries and oil depots’ facilities and insecurity in the country that has led to the death of members of the two unions.

Other complaints are appointments in government agencies in disregard to succession planning, compulsory deduction from workers’ salaries for the National Housing Fund (NHF); casualisation and contract staffing and unfair labour practice by companies and government agencies.

The grievances also include termination of appointment of the Port Harcourt Zonal Secretary of the association by Total Exploration and Production (Total E&P) Nigeria Limited; retardation of staff promotion in the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF); non-standardisation of nomenclature and collective bargaining agreement of the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Agency (NNRA) in line with what is obtained in other agencies in the oil and gas industry and refusal of the management of Addax/Petrostuff Nigeria Limited and Chevron/Sudelletra to recall sacked staff.

The oil workers had on October 31 issued a 14-day ultimatum to government, threatening that at the expiration they would no longer issue any notice to government because the issues had been protracted and government and other affected companies had not shown any commitment to addressing the workers grievances.

•Photo shows NNPC GMD