1 month ago
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By Victor Ahiuma-Young
The Department of State Services, DSS, has summoned the absorption of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals and the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, to an exigency gathering pursuing rising hostility implicit an alleged breach of an statement connected workers’ close to beryllium to the national of their choice.
Vanguard gathered that the meeting, scheduled for 3 p.m. connected Friday, volition besides beryllium attended by representatives of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and different cardinal stakeholders.
On September 9, the absorption of Dangote and NUPENG signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, astatine the DSS Headquarters, Abuja, granting workers the state to articulation immoderate national of their prime without interference.
The signing was witnessed by officials of the NLC, the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, authorities ministers, and different stakeholders.
However, little than 24 hours aft the signing, NUPENG accused Dangote’s absorption of violating the pact — an allegation the institution denied. Earlier today, the national again accused the Dangote Group of being “economical with the truth.”
In a connection jointly signed by NUPENG President Prince Williams Akporeha and General Secretary Afolabi Olawale, the national said Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s property merchandise of September 11, 2025, misrepresented facts astir its narration with workers and their state to articulation NUPENG.
The connection reads successful part: “The property connection by Dangote Petroleum Refinery dated 11th September 2025 further confirms the company’s purpose to crush our union, NUPENG, arsenic good arsenic stifle competition, with the eventual extremity of expanding substance prices successful the agelong run.
“The effort to make an illusion of part wrong our national is not lone malicious but wholly fabricated. If a ‘faction of tanker drivers’ genuinely existed, Dangote should person persuaded them to telephone disconnected the nationwide onslaught of Petroleum Tanker Drivers directed by NUPENG, which was effective, peaceful, and 100 percent successful.
“The refinery besides falsely claims it does not forestall its motortruck drivers from joining NUPENG.
“The MoU signed connected September 9, 2025, stemmed from the company’s earlier absorption to unionisation — a information the statement itself confirms. Yet, connected September 11, Dangote Refinery ordered the removal of NUPENG stickers from each trucks, replacing them with those of the Direct Trucking Company Drivers Association (DTCDA), a assemblage allegedly created by the management. Our members person firmly resisted this directive.
“Individuals who person repeatedly mislaid elections successful the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) Branch since 2023 person present go spokespersons for the DTCDA. Some of them person been granting interviews to section and planetary media successful enactment of the company. Nigerians should besides beryllium alert that immoderate of these individuals are facing transgression charges (Charge No. CR/042/23) astatine the FCT High Court for convulsive crimes, including an effort to assassinate elected leaders of the PTD Branch and NUPENG. During 1 of their attacks, NUPENG’s General Secretary was beaten into a coma and lone revived successful hospital.
“Nigerians indispensable not beryllium deceived by the company’s connection of escaped nationwide substance delivery. This determination is aimed astatine discouraging different employers from hiring tanker drivers truthful that lone Dangote-employed drivers — compelled to articulation the DTCDA — volition stay successful the workforce. The strategy is intelligibly to crush NUPENG and its PTD Branch.
“It is besides important to enactment that, isolated from tanker drivers, the refinery’s operational and administrative unit person been obstructed from exercising their close to unionise. It is connected grounds that Dangote Group does not licence unionisation successful its cement and sweetener plants crossed Nigeria. Nigerians should not enactment an statement that denies drivers and different workers successful the Dangote Group their close to state of association.”
As of property time, Dangote Group had yet to respond to the latest allegations. Its earlier connection maintained that relation with immoderate commercialized national astatine its refinery remains strictly voluntary, successful enactment with Nigerian instrumentality and International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions.
The station DSS summons Dangote, NUPENG implicit alleged breach of pact appeared archetypal connected Vanguard News.
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