The Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) Branch of NUPENG has urged President Bola Tinubu to call the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) to order, accusing the union of overstepping its mandate and undermining the achievements of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals.
In a strongly worded statement issued in Abuja by Obi-Dede Wonder on behalf of PTD elders, the drivers dismissed PENGASSAN’s recent strike threat in the downstream sector. They described the union’s position as “empty, mischievous and irrelevant.”
PTD Pushes Back Against Allegations
The tanker drivers rejected PENGASSAN’s claims that Dangote wrongfully sacked 800 Nigerian workers and replaced them with 2,000 Indians, many allegedly without valid immigration papers.
“PENGASSAN’s lamentation is not only false but a shameful blackmail tactic. Since when did PENGASSAN assume the role of immigration authorities to profile foreigners in Nigeria?” the statement asked.
PTD insisted that Dangote Refinery had already explained the move as an internal reorganisation aimed at strengthening operations and preventing sabotage within the multi-billion-dollar facility. They stressed that more than 3,000 Nigerians remain employed at the refinery after the restructuring.
Support for Dangote Refinery
The drivers maintained that employers, including Dangote, have the constitutional right to hire or disengage staff where necessary to protect efficiency, safety, and national energy security. They argued that the refinery’s actions align with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
PTD further accused PENGASSAN and NUPENG of clinging to “outdated tactics of extortion through unjustifiable check-off dues” while undermining Nigeria’s strategic interests.
“We call on Nigerians to resist the antics of these economic saboteurs. PENGASSAN and its cohorts must stop exploiting the workforce to satisfy narrow pecuniary fantasies at the expense of national priorities. All relevant stakeholders must rise now and shame them,” the statement read.
A Strategic National Asset
Reiterating their support for Dangote Refinery, PTD praised management for tackling acts of sabotage and safeguarding the facility. They described the refinery as a “strategic national asset critical to energy security, industrial stability, and thousands of livelihoods across Nigeria and Africa.”
The drivers urged President Tinubu, the National Assembly, and security agencies—including the Police, DSS, and NSCDC—to shield the refinery from what they called “the antics of subsidy thieves and their stranded surrogates.”
They also commended the refinery for upholding internationally accepted labour standards, particularly the right of workers to freely choose union membership.
Earlier, Dangote Refinery clarified that its workforce audit and reorganisation were a preventive step to ensure safety, transparency, and long-term stability in its operations.