Nigeria has announced a five percentcut in its crude oil production and exports. Officials attribute thedecision to a decline in international demand and disruptionsof operations by militants in the Niger Delta. Analysts say the cut willdrastically affect the country's budget, which relies heavily on oil revenues.Attacks by militants have reduced Nigeria's overall production by 20percent.
Elijah Okougbo is general secretary of theNational Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG). He says the cutin oil production may not have a significant effect on the overall workforce inthe oil sector.
"Five percent cut on production quarter is not going to have a significant effect on workers in the oil sector,from past experience, since the Niger Delta crisis started, most of themulti-national s who were adversely affected by the crisis and stop productioncarried a lot of their workers, they kept them on stand-by and did not go aheadto sack them immediately. There is every hope that the OPEC quota will changeafter two months.
He says the overall impact of the cut may notbe too difficult for the country to manage. " I think it will only affect if it is on for six months. It will affect the economy in the sensethat it may in one way or the othernegatively affect the budget not oil and gas workers because that percentage ismarginal and OPEC may rescind that decision after some time".
Okougbo says oil workers are not responsible for the country problems inmeeting its production and export quota contrary to government claims.
" It was only during the June 12 struggle when we confronted thegovernment the military government of [Gen] Babangida in 1993 and went on strike for some days so the military should quit the stage, that wewere accused of economic sabotage and then we started a major strike whichlasted nine weeks, that was the only time we were accused".