The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to urgency sign the Energy Commission of Nigeria Amendment Bill 2022 before handing over to the incoming administration come 29 May, 2023.
The appeal was contained in a press statement jointly signed by the PENGASSAN president, Comrade Festus Osifo and its secretary, Comrade Lumumba Okugbawa in Abuja yesterday.
The association said the assent is necessary due to the negligence of the bill since it was transmitted to the President in 2022.
They reminded the President of the critical role of the Energy Commission of Nigeria in nation building, especially as the commission is expected to meet up with the energy demands of the country in critical areas by sustaining energy development in the country.
The association blamed the inability of the Energy Commission of Nigeria to perform its mandated duties on bureaucratic breakdowns with the various stakeholders and internal shortcomings. stressing that the situation has been costly for the Nigeria’s energy sector.
According to Osifo, the provisions of the current Act of the Energy Commission are no longer in tandem with the present realities in the energy sector, hence the request for the Amendment of the bill.
PENGASSAN maintained that this is the right time to strengthen the Energy Commission of Nigeria which has the mandate of producing strategic plans for the government in the energy sector in all ramifications.
The association stressed that assenting to the bill in addition to the Petroleum Industry Act already signed into law by the President will go a long way in repositioning the entire energy sector as well as nation’s economy.
