The Vice Chairman of the LPG Marketers Association of Ghana, Gabriel Kumi, says his Association will not call off its strike till they have received favorable communication from cabinet.

The Gas Tanker Drivers Association and Petrol Tanker Unions commenced a sit-down strike on August 1, 2022, to drive home their concerns over the ban on the construction of new Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) stations as well as stations already under construction and at various stages of development.

According to the unions the ban has adversely affected most of their employers.

They are demanding an immediate lifting of the ban on stations which were already under construction before the imposition of the ban in 2017, and the subsequent lifting of the ban on construction of new LPG stations.

According to them, the ban on the construction of new LPG outlets among others, has affected their working conditions.

Gabriel Kumi, speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on Wednesday stated that till Cabinet heeds their concerns and communicates likewise, they will be unable to call off the strike.

According to him, the strike has been in the offing for a while now but did to see the light of day due to the leaders of the various associations urging their membership to exercise patience.

“Do you know the number of times these drivers have attempted to go on strike that we have stepped in to call off these strikes? About four times. Every time, we step in and say guys, let’s see what the Ministry is doing, let’s see what the NPA is doing. Let’s go back to work.

“Now, in fact, if we attempt to go and tell them to do that, some of us will be slaughtered. We’ve gotten to that stage. So let’s all wait, cabinet has finished its meeting, it’s done. Until we see the communication it will be very difficult for leadership to go back to members and tell them that go back to work,” he said.

Meanwhile, cabinet has lifted the ban on construction of LPG outlets throughout the country.

This is contained in a letter addressed to the Chairman of the LPG Marketers Association of Ghana by the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) on August 3, 2022.

According to the statement signed by the Chief Executive of the NPA, Dr. Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, “We are pleased to inform you that Cabinet at its 35th Sitting, held on August 3rd 2022, has granted a special dispensation to allow the completion of the construction of stranded LPG stations across the country, that were affected by the ban on the construction and operation of new LPG facilities in 2017.”

The NPA therefore requested, “all OMCs/ LPGMCs who were affected by this directive to resubmit their applications to the Authority.”