Oil Firm Nilepet in Turmoil as Staff Push to Sack MD

By Awan Achiek

The staff of state-owned oil firm Nile Petroleum Corporation (Nilepet) on Monday called for the immediate removal of their managing director, Ayuel Ngor, over alleged mismanagement of the company.

Mr. Tito Majok Mayom, Secretary General of the Staff Workers’ Trade Union, said that they began a sit-in strike on Monday, demanding three months of unpaid salary arrears, allowances, and benefits.

“The only way is to go out and air our voices through a sit-in strike. People will be coming to the office, but no one will be doing anything,” Mayom told Dawn.

Mayom indicated that the week-long protest will occur daily from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. until their demands are addressed.

“This strike is set to run for one week, and it is supposed to be from 9 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon,” he said.

He added that the staff are demanding the removal of the managing director, citing accusations of mismanagement within the company.

“Nilepet will not survive under this current leadership. Therefore, the staff group is calling on the leadership of the country to immediately remove the current managing director.”

He alleged that since his appointment on 20th October 2024, Ngor has been running Nilepet like his private company by appointing his relatives to key positions.

“It is only the MD who is managing the company as if it were his personal finances. This has caused mistrust between the staff and the managing director.”

For his part, Garang Ater, spokesperson of the Staff Workers’ Trade Union, noted that they had gone three months without pay despite the resumption of oil production.

“The oil has resumed. We were promised our salary. There will be a restatement of our salary. You know, since last year up until now, we are still receiving the salaries that were cut by 70%,” Ater said.

He demanded a full restatement of salaries, as well as the resumption of food rations that had been suspended for five months, and payment of allowances and benefits.

“We were expecting that since oil production resumed, we would receive our full salary this month and in the months to come.”

Nancy Malir, a representative of the staff, expressed their desire for dialogue with the managing director to address their grievances, including salary delays and insurance coverage.

“We demand payment of the percentage that was cut after oil production resumed. Also, on behalf of the staff, we are demanding our insurance cover,” Malir said.

She called for the implementation of a human resource policy to safeguard staff, citing a lack of transparency regarding promotions and secondments to the Joint Operating Company (JOC).

When contacted by Dawn, the Nilepet Director of Public Relations, Angelina Lavric, said that she had heard people talking about the strike, but nothing is happening.

“But you have to find out if there is a strike before you can come and take the information, because up to now, there is nothing like this. People are talking about it, but there is nothing like a strike.”

The Nilepet’s Managing Director did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Last year, Nile Petroleum Corporation reduced the salaries of all employees by half due to the force majeure resulting from fighting in neighbouring Sudan, which led to the shutdown of a significant portion of South Sudan’s oil production.

The decision, announced by the former Managing Director of NilePet, Bernard Amour Makeny, to NilePet staff  aims to mitigate the crisis’s impact on the company and its employees while “navigating through these challenging times.”