…NLC, NUPENG, IPMAN, PETROAN, rally against ‘monopoly’
…Rights group demands arrest of union leaders
…FG pleads for calm
By Franklin Adole
Nigeria faces crippling fuel shortages from today as a coalition of petroleum unions, labour groups, and activists square up against the Dangote Petroleum Refinery over what they describe as anti-labour practices and monopolistic control of the downstream oil sector. The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) have declared strikes and solidarity actions in defiance of Dangote’s entry into direct petrol distribution, raising fears of a nationwide shutdown.
NUPENG, in a statement by President Comrade Williams Akporeha and General Secretary Afolabi Olawale, accused Dangote Refinery of barring drivers of its 10,000 compressed natural gas (CNG) trucks from joining trade unions, calling it a violation of the 1999 Constitution and international labour conventions. The union said repeated efforts with road transport owners to reverse Dangote’s position had failed, forcing it to mobilise petroleum tanker drivers for strike action from Monday.
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Western Zone, announced it will also shut operations from today in solidarity with NUPENG. Zone chairman, Chief Oyewole Akanni, said Dangote’s planned distribution of petrol and diesel alongside MRS Holdings threatens the survival of IPMAN’s 4,000 trucks and thousands of jobs. He added that the arrangement violates the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which forbids refiners from engaging in distribution.
In a similar move, the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) declared a three-day suspension of lifting and dispensing petroleum products from Tuesday. Its president, Dr Billy Gillis-Harry, said the action aims to resist monopolistic control of the sector and warned that Dangote’s strategy could wipe out private depot owners, modular refiners, marketers, and retailers, triggering mass unemployment. He called on President Bola Tinubu and regulators to intervene urgently.
Backing the unions, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has directed its 54 affiliates and 36 state councils to prepare for solidarity strikes. In a circular titled Solidarity Alert and Call to Action, the NLC described Dangote’s actions as a “declaration of war on the Nigerian working class,” vowing to resist what it called crude anti-union practices, poor wages, and indecent labour relations. “An attack on one union is an attack on all of us,” the Congress warned, urging nationwide mobilisation.
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, also weighed in, condemning Dangote’s policy as unconstitutional and a breach of both Nigerian and international labour laws. He urged the government to stop what he described as monopolistic practices that undermine workers’ rights. Falana warned that Nigeria cannot erase a century-long struggle for freedom of association, pledging full support for NUPENG’s strike.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government appealed for restraint. Labour and Employment Minister, Muhammad Dingyadi, urged NUPENG to suspend its action, warning that even a day’s strike could cost billions and worsen hardship. He said conciliation meetings had been convened to resolve the dispute peacefully.
But in a sharp counter, a civil society group, Rights for Human Dignity and Justice (RHDAJ), demanded the arrest of NUPENG leaders, accusing them of economic sabotage. The group alleged that some union members, in collusion with non-state actors, planned to burn Dangote’s CNG trucks, citing intelligence reminiscent of the EndSARS violence. Its director, Iheanyi Kingsley, urged the DSS and police to act decisively, even suggesting proscription of the union if necessary.
Observers warned yesterday that the proposed strike could paralyse transport, power, and manufacturing, deepen inflation, and worsen the cost-of-living crisis. “With both labour and civil groups entrenched, today’s showdown may well determine the future of union rights, monopoly regulation, and industrial relations in Nigeria’s most strategic sector,” one analyst pointed out in an interview with KTH Daily.