Strike Alert: PENGASSAN Calls for Nationwide Shutdown Over Dangote Refinery Dismissals
By: Abudu Olalekan
Something big is brewing. A massive showdown. It’s between one of Nigeria’s biggest companies and a powerful union. The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN for short, they’ve had enough. And they are not playing games. They have instructed their members, all of them, to just stop working. A nationwide strike. It starts Monday. A full shutdown. It’s a huge deal.
Why? Well, the union claims something truly outrageous happened at the Dangote Refinery. The word is, the refinery just fired over 800 Nigerian workers. Gone. Just like that. And why were they fired? According to a circular issued by the union, it’s because those workers dared to join the association. That’s it. It’s a direct violation of Nigeria’s own labour laws. It’s a slap in the face to our constitution. And it flies right in the face of international conventions. The union is fuming.
Their National Executive Council, the big guys in charge, they said this is an “affront to all workers in Nigeria.” The accusations get even more serious. The NEC claims the refinery has replaced the dismissed staff with “over 2,000 Indians.” You hear that? Two thousand people from another country, supposedly taking the jobs of Nigerians. The outrage is real. And it’s the catalyst for this whole mess.
To make their point, PENGASSAN has a plan. A very serious plan. They told their members in field locations to stop working yesterday, Sunday. This includes people in control rooms, panel operations, and all the outfield personnel. They were also told to “commence 24-hour prayers.” A strike and a prayer vigil. That’s intense. But that was just the start.
The real hammer falls today. Starting at 00:01 on Monday, all PENGASSAN members across every office, every company, and every agency must withdraw their services. Total shutdown. The union’s letter reads like an order, strict and clear. “No intervention whatsoever will be entertained across field locations,” it states, unless there is a safety risk, and even then, clearance must be gotten from the National Secretariat. It’s a very tight operation.
And here’s the most critical part, the part that will really hit the refinery hard. The circular specifically demands, “All processes that involve gas and crude supply to Dangote Refinery should be let off effectively immediately.” Not only that, “All IOC branches must ramp down gas production and supply to Dangote Refinery and petrochemicals.” This isn’t just a strike. This is a move to stop the refinery from operating.
The union’s message is loud and clear. They put it in the circular: “An injury to one is an injury to all. No man is bigger than our country.” They have appealed to the government for help. The strike, they say, will not end until every single dismissed worker is hired back. Every one.
Reportersroom understands this isn’t the first time the refinery has been in a fight with unions. They have been in a heated argument with the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers over similar issues like labour rights and safety standards. There has been a lot of tension there. This particular clash reportedly started when the refinery, in a letter dated September 24, gave a reason for the sackings. They said they were firing some staff for alleged “sabotage” that threatened the safety of the massive 650,000-barrel-per-day plant.
But the union says that’s not it. They say it’s about unionisation. And the number of sacked staff is around 800. PENGASSAN is calling on everyone, all the unions, government agencies, and stakeholders, to step in and fix this. They call it a matter of “urgent national importance.”
The company, for their part, they deny mass sacking anyone. According to a report by Reportersroom, management said they were doing an “internal reorganisation” to improve things. They insisted most of their workers are still Nigerian. But PENGASSAN’s action, if it’s followed, could really mess up things. It could stop supplies and disrupt the whole operation of the plant. The stakes are incredibly high for everyone.
