The Dangote Group has accused the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) of acts tantamount to “terror” against Nigerians, describing the union’s recent strike directive as reckless and lawless.
In a statement released on Sunday, Dangote Group condemned PENGASSAN’s order instructing its members to withdraw services from Dangote Refinery and other operations nationwide. The union’s directive, issued on September 27, mandates members in field locations to stop work from 6:00 a.m. on Sunday, September 28, and for all other members across companies, institutions, and agencies to withdraw services from 12:01 a.m. on Monday, September 29.
The directive also ordered a shutdown of gas and crude supply processes to the Dangote Refinery and instructed International Oil Company (IOC) branches to halt gas production and supply to the refinery and its petrochemical operations.
“Strike Threatens Lives and Economy” – Dangote Group
Dangote Group warned that the strike could severely disrupt the supply of essential petroleum products — including petrol, diesel, kerosene, cooking gas, and aviation fuel — putting hospitals, schools, emergency services, and transportation systems at risk.
“PENGASSAN seems unconcerned about the unbearable hardship and terror its actions would inflict on Nigerians, including those relying on hospitals, care homes, and life-support systems,” the statement read.
PENGASSAN’s Allegations
The union claims the strike is in response to Dangote Refinery’s alleged sacking of over 800 workers for joining PENGASSAN and the replacement of Nigerian workers with more than 2,000 Indian nationals.
Dangote Group strongly denied the allegations, saying:
“These claims are false and have been repeatedly debunked. Over 3,000 Nigerians currently work at the refinery, and we continue to hire through graduate trainee programs and experienced recruitment processes.”
The company admitted to a recent internal reorganization but described it as a limited exercise affecting only a small number of staff and carried out in the refinery’s best interest.
Calls for Accountability
Dangote Group accused PENGASSAN of a pattern of sabotaging national economic projects, citing its 2007 opposition to the privatization of the Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries.
It also challenged both PENGASSAN and the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) to publish their audited financial accounts for the past decade within seven days, saying failure to do so would expose them to public shame.
“Nigerians Must Not Be Held Hostage”
“The oligarchs in PENGASSAN have proved themselves to be terrorists and bullies. Their tactics must be defeated by the Nigerian people,” the statement declared.
Dangote Group urged the federal government and the public to act quickly to prevent a national energy crisis, warning that PENGASSAN’s actions could undermine Nigeria’s energy security and economic recovery.
“An injury to Dangote Refinery is an injury to all Nigerians. The union and its allies must not be allowed to introduce chaos and threaten lives,” the company concluded.
