Akwa Ibom Govt threatens to sanction foreign firm for maltreating indigenous workers

Akwa Ibom State Government has issued a warning to Sterling Global Petrochemical Company, a foreign oil prospecting firm operating in Ikot Abasi, Mkpat Enin and Eastern Obollo local government areas of the state, over reported cases of maltreatment of indigenous workers in the company.

It mandated the company to present the status of all the people working on its projects in the state including the expatriates or risk licence and land revocation.

The Director General of Government Business, and former Nigeria’s Ambassador to Russia and the Belarus, Chief Assam Assam, SAN, who is the chairman of the mediation committee between the oil firm and the affected communities, issued the warning on Monday in reaction to the allegations of flagrant disrespect and non-compliance to rules of engagement of workers by the company.

He warned against any engagement of the services of Akwa Ibom workers without fulfilling the globally accepted conditions of employment, whether in the public or private sector.

Assam frowned at the alleged insensitivity of the firm in their dealings with the people, and condemned their resort to intimidation using the military, noting that the government will not accept any act that reduces Akwa Ibom people to second class citizens.

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He said, “Sterling Global ought to learn from the labour friendly disposition of Governor Umo Eno, and be a good corporate citizen of the state, failure of which the State Government will revoke the land given to the company to operate in Akwa Ibom State.

“We cannot accept this in any part of Akwa Ibom State. You cannot reduce our people to slaves in their land. We must see the nominal roll of your employees. We must know exactly what you are doing so that people will not import arms into our State in the name of bringing in machines and equipment.

“So failure to deliver on these demands we will revoke all the licenses that have been given to you. We will revoke all the lands that have been given to you by Akwa Ibom state government. And we will stop all expatriates who you cannot identify working within your facility. We don’t want people to import arms into our communities.”

Commissioner for Labour and Productivity, Mr Aniefiok Nkom said Sterling Global has shown great irresponsibility in its operations, with total disregard to court orders and turning down invitations by the State Government to mediate in the lingering issues.

Executive Chairman, Akwa Ibom State Internal Revenue Service, Mr Okon Okon disclosed that Sterling Global has neither paid a dime as tenement tax nor PAYE tax to the State Government as their operations are shrouded in secrecy, giving them out as people on a deliberate mission of tax evasion.

Transition committee chairmen for Ikot Abasi, Mkpat Enin and Eastern Obolo LGAs lamented the agony Sterling Global has thrown their people into and commended the State Government for coming to their rescue, as the situation was becoming unbearable and lethal.

Meanwhile, when the Human Resource Manager, Sterling Global Ltd, Mr David Walker, was asked to present the list of the staff working for the company, he said he didn’t come with it but mentioned that a total of 3,710 people are working on the company’s projects.

Walker, while presenting the document on the company’s conditions of service, said, “These are the conditions of service that we use for the category of people working presently on the project.”

On whether the document captured the positions and salaries of its staff including expatriates working on the projects, Walker simply responded, “No sir, because the expatriates are not Nigerians. This condition of service is only for the nationals.”