What Hostage Crisis Cost Us, By Firm
From John Iwori in Yenagoa
The disruption of operations as a result of the trade dispute between the contract staff and management of Pride Forasol, an oil service company engaged by Conoil Producing Limited which led to 11 expatriate workers being held hostage had cost the contractor $1 million.
A representative of Pride Forasol, Mr. Michael Andino, at a thank you meeting with Governor Diepreye Alamieye-seigha of Bayelsa State, said his company lost the money as a result of disruption of its operations by the activities of the workers.
Andino who expressed regret over the development said the dispute was "purely an internal matter" between the management and staff of the service company.
Andino added disclosed that the company would soon establish a liaison office in the state capital, Yenagoa.
The representatives of the aggrieved workers at the parley requested for the payment of their salary arrears, quarterly safety allowance, hotel and transport allowances during crew change and pay-off package at the expiration of the contract.
In his opening remarks at the meeting, Alamieyeseigha called on multinational oil companies operating in the state to discard the idea of recruiting staff on contract basis, as it was reminiscent of the days of slavery.
He said it was criminal to employ medical doctors and other professionals on contract, pointing out that it was time multinational companies review their employment policies with a view to recruiting staff on permanent basis.
Alamieyeseigha noted that there were obvious problems concerning the contract workers of Pride Forasol Drilling Company Limited.
The governor observed that if the condition of service and contract terms of the workers were clearly spelt out, the trade dispute that led to the holding of the 11 foreign workers as hostages for negotiation purposes would not have arisen.
While calling on all companies operating in the state to provide conducive working environment for their employees, Alamieyeseigha warned that government would not tolerate any form of marginalization and oppression of staff of multinational firms on the basis of colour or tribe.
He decried the poor level of communication between oil companies operating in the state and the state government.
According to him, "it is unacceptable for such companies to operate in the state without functional offices".
"All oil companies alongside their service companies operating in the state must as a matter of urgency establish functional offices in Bayelsa State.
"The workers of these companies must be made to pay PAYE (Pay As You Earn) income tax or face prosecution in line with the enabling laws.
"The management of Pride Forasol and their labour contractors must meet with the aggrieved contract staff with a view to resolving their differences within two weeks", Alamieyeseigha said.
The hostage taking incident which occured at Sangana, in Brass Local Government area of Bayelsa State forced Alamieyeseigha to cut short his trip to the United Kingdom to lead a rescue team which secured the release of the 11 hostages. The expatriates held hostage included 8 French national, one Croatian, one American and one Nigerien.
Meanwhile, the leadership of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) has stated that the group had no hand in the kidnap incident.
In a protest march to the Bayelsa State office of THIS DAY in Yenagoa, led by its newly elected President, Comrade Oyeinfie Emmanuel Jonjon, the group expressed its unhappiness that the incident was linked to the Ijaw youths.
Describing the detention of the 11 foreign staff as "pure labour dispute between contract staff and management of Pride Forasol Limited, the organisation which is made up of Ijaw youths in Delta, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Bayelsa and Ondo States, said it was wrong for anybody to associate IYC with kidnapping and vandalization of oil installations.
While describing the new leadership of IYC as a responsible one, the youth leader recalled the existing cordial relationship the body has with the media, especially with THISDAY over the years, and prayed the newspaper not to allow anything to come between them.
"We are a responsible body with a responsible leadership. Therefore we don't want any individual or organization to link us to killings, hijacking of foreign workers, bunkering or vandalization of oil installations.
"None of our members have a hand in the Monday incident at Sangana. That is our message to you", Jonjon added.
The group also called on the Bayelsa State government to look into what it called the "basic issues that led to the hostage of the 11 foreign workers at Sangana."
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