Workers at the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Train 7 project on Bonny Island have staged a protest over alleged illegal tax deductions running into millions of naira.
The aggrieved staff, mostly employed under Daewoo Contractors, took to the streets earlier in the week, accusing the company of deducting about ₦150,000 monthly from each worker for tax clearance over the last two years without issuing them Tax Identification Numbers (TINs).
According to the protesters, an internal audit reportedly revealed that the deductions were not remitted to the Federal Government, raising questions over what they described as “organised fraud.”
One of the workers, a pipe welder who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the protest became inevitable after repeated calls for explanation were ignored.
“We have been asking questions for months, yet nothing was done. They kept deducting money in the name of tax, but till today, we don’t have TINs. That is why we decided to down tools,” he said.
The demonstration, which reportedly began with welders and fitters, has since spread to junior staff across the project site.
The workers are now demanding a full refund of all deductions as well as immediate issuance of their TINs.
Meanwhile, some protesters accused their union leaders of compromising, alleging that they had been aware of the alleged illegal deductions but chose to remain silent because of personal benefits.
Efforts to reach NLNG and Daewoo management for comment were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report.
