BY AMARACHI JIM-NWOKO
ABUJA (PRECISE POST) – The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has honoured the memory of its former President, the late Francis Olabodi Johnson, describing him as a leader whose contributions to the union remain worthy of remembrance.
Johnson, who served as President of PENGASSAN from June 2014 to May 31, 2019, was remembered at a special event attended by the union’s current and former leaders, friends, associates and well-wishers.
The event provided an opportunity for members of the Central Working Committee (CWC) and other stakeholders to celebrate the life and times of the former union leader and pay tribute to his contributions to PENGASSAN.
Speaking at the event, the President of PENGASSAN, Comrade Festus Osifo, described Johnson as a good man, a gentleman and a generous giver.
Osifo also commended the late president’s wife for her strength and commitment in caring for the children he left behind.
He said Johnson’s sudden death had plunged the union into a period of uncertainty, but PENGASSAN was eventually able to overcome the challenges, give him a befitting burial and continue its journey of growth and stability.
The PENGASSAN president said the union had chosen to focus on the positive attributes of its former leaders as a way of immortalising their legacies and building on the foundations they laid.
According to him, PENGASSAN, one of Nigeria’s foremost trade unions, has continued to attract highly qualified professionals from the oil and gas industry, including doctors, engineers, accountants, scientists and business administrators.
Osifo said the presence of highly educated professionals within the union often led to different opinions and contestations, particularly during leadership succession.
He, however, disclosed that the union had introduced reforms aimed at reducing tensions associated with succession and ensuring a smoother transition of leadership.
He said PENGASSAN had amended its constitution to adopt a succession model in which the elected Deputy President would automatically succeed the President, thereby eliminating contests for the office of the President.
He said the new arrangement had significantly reduced tension within the union ahead of its next transition scheduled for August.
“Normally, two years before transition in PENGASSAN, you will see problems everywhere. But I will tell you that there is 100 per cent stability. The CWC is intact and the transition is going smoothly,” he said.
Osifo said the current leadership had not only sustained the legacies of previous leaders but had also built on them, expressing the hope that future leaders would take the union to greater heights.
He said he would be happy to see his successor surpass the achievements of the current leadership, stressing that leadership should be about building institutions rather than preventing successors from excelling.
Osifo, said the current leadership had therefore prioritised stability, transparency and unity within the union’s decision-making organs.
He further disclosed that, the union’s Central Working Committee, National Executive Council and other statutory organs had remained united, adding that the leadership had successfully conducted three Special Delegates Conferences without rancour.
The PENGASSAN president, however, acknowledged that it was impossible for everyone in an organisation with tens of thousands of members to be satisfied at all times.
He said the important thing was that the union’s recognised decision-making organs remained united and focused on a common direction.
Osifo further stated that stability within PENGASSAN would enable the union to better protect workers’ jobs, negotiate improved collective bargaining agreements, secure better welfare packages and improve members’ conditions of service.
He said efforts to reduce unnecessary tension within the union’s leadership and succession processes would ultimately strengthen its ability to serve its members and contribute to the growth of the oil and gas industry.
