Lagos — Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has called on the Federal Government to ask security agencies in the South East to free the Chairman of Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Isah Ibrahim, captured by kidnappers in Owerri on his way from the airport at the weekend.

The abduction came amid growing concerns about the whereabouts of the four senior journalists kidnapped in Abia penultimate week.

The River State Council of Trade Union Congress (TUC), Chika Unuegbu, told Sunday Independent in a telephone chat that the Congress has given the Federal Government to free Ibrahim within 24 hours or face mass action from oil workers in the country.

He said: "We want to state that TUC will not fail to call out all senior staff in the private and public sector in support of whatever action PENGASSAN would take to protest the kidnap and unacceptable insecurity in the South East and South-South states."

Unuegbu, who accused the government agencies of inability to fish out kidnappers in the country, stressed that information reaching the union has it that there are plans to kidnap oil workers since they can call for huge ransom for their release.

"We are deeply worried that the insecurity in the country has continued to deteriorate while the security votes of government have continued to soar," he said.

He said most labour leader in the south-East and South-South states are on daily basis receiving threat letters, signalling them to be their next targets.

"We now sleep with our eyes open as a result of threat letters by kidnappers raising whether false alarm or genuine alarm of kidnapping for be ransom", he said.

"As I speak to you now, Comrade Telema Smart-Jack, the zonal Chairman PEGASSAN, Port Harcourt has received several threat letters and text messages from kidnappers and as a result he cannot sleep in his house. Our hearts are with the family of Isah Ibrahim but PENGASSAN at this trying time will not fold its hands to allow few individuals in the country make life unbearable for its members."