Oil workers urge gov’t top end corruption, nepotism

JUBA – Employees of South Sudan’s oil companies are urging in a statement extended to Sudans Post the country’s reconstituted unity government to work hard to end the rampant corruption as well as nepotism.

This statement was issued as the country commemorates the World Labour Day.

“The government of South Sudan should fiercely fight corruption, tribalism and nepotism to create equal opportunities for all South Sudanese regardless of their ethnic origins and to bring in justice and dignity for all,” the statement signed by Gabriel Matut Maliah, Secretary for Employee Affairs of Workers Trade Union of Petroleum & Mining GPOC’s  Sub-office.

“The RTGoNU should stop by all means the unnecessary loss of lives and shedding of blood and embrace peace so that the civil population should focus on works and enjoy the sweats of their labours in the world of work;

“The Ministry of Labour and Industrial Relations, Ministry of Public Service and Human Resource Development and other relevant ministries both in states and national levels should openly screen out ghost names to open chances for youth and those still unemployed;

“The Ministry of Labour and Industrial Relations should start to pave the way to decent work which should be in line with International Labour Organization standards (ILO);

“The Ministry of Labour and Industrial Actions together with the Ministry of Public Service and Human Resource Development and other institutions to establish credible labour and human resource development inspection system that will facilitate the development of highly skilled workforces to meet high demands of growing advanced technologies in the world of work;

“High-level political commitment to enforcement of laws and regulations should be established to fight those who take laws into their hands as it is the only way to maintain law and order. Without accountability and implementation of rule of law, there will is no stability and progress in the nation, which jeopardize the need for decent work in the country;

“Public, private institutions and NGOs should avoid partial implementation of labour laws and other Human Resource policies that have been authorized by the government to prevent gross exploitation of national workers in private and public sectors;

“Government of South Sudan to create a conducive environment where the rights of all workers in the country, including foreign workers, are promoted, and upheld;

“All National Employees in DPOC, SPOC and GPOC as well as other operating oil companies in the country to rally behind National Workers Trade Union of Petroleum and Mining as a broad-based alliance to collectively seek practical solutions to their problems in the hands of employers;

“Ministry of Petroleum to enforce the implementation of all policies in the oil sector especially Petroleum Act 2012, HSE Rules and Regulation 2015, Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement, New Unified Human Resource Policy Manual 2020;

“Ministry of Petroleum to prioritize training and development of National Employees in all joint operating companies (DPOC, GPOC & SPOC and other oil companies in the country to promote South Sudanization policy which shall create opportunities for South Sudanese in the oil sector;

“Nile Petroleum Corporation should use international best practices of secondment of its secondees to joint operating companies which mostly base on merits and professionalism rather than political-base appointment to avoid previous years inconveniences caused by some incompetent secondees;

“WTUPM GPOC Sub-office urges all National employees in oil sector (DPOC, GPOC & SPOC) to form an “ Action Forum or Ad hoc committee” that will work out issues that require improvement and coordinate issues that affect Oil workers;

“President Kiir as the Head of State and government is urged to empower the Ministry of Petroleum in the transformation of the oil sector, which will give them power and confident to fight those that have kept the ministry captive for almost a decade in its quest for reform and enhancement of working conditions for employees in the sector;

“No one including government is safe and free from the dangers of unemployment of youths and jobless until almost everyone gets a job, so it is a government to create jobs and decent working conditions for everybody whether skilled or unskilled (manual jobs).

“To conclude, we in the Trade Union GPOC Sub office appreciate the commitments made by the government under the current administration in the Ministry of Petroleum as they are working tirelessly to improve the conditions of work and welfare of the workers in the oil industry.
We urge South Sudan government to work towards aligning our national labor frameworks with international standards for protecting the rights and wellbeing of all workers across the country and fight corrupt officials that build towers abroad at the expenses of the country and its ordinary citizens.

“We also urge all NGOs and oil companies operating in the country not to take the current situation in the country as an advantage to mistreat employees and deny them their rights of fair working conditions. This is not acceptable to the union and we urge the Ministry of Labour and Industrial Relations to take charge of its regulatory and supervisory roles. “