The crisis between the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and oil workers deepened on Saturday as the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) directed its members to halt all crude oil and gas supply to the facility with immediate effect.
The directive, contained in a circular signed by the union’s General Secretary, Lumumba Okugbawa, was addressed to branch chairmen nationwide. PENGASSAN said the move was in protest against the alleged unlawful termination of over 800 Nigerian workers who had joined the association.
According to the memo, workers have been instructed to cut off gas supply from the Nigerian Gas Infrastructure Company Limited, shut all crude oil valves leading to the refinery, and suspend loading operations for any vessel scheduled to berth at the plant.
The letter read in part, “As you are aware, the management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery has disengaged our members in reaction to the exercise of their constitutional right to be unionised. Rather than engage meaningfully, they have resorted to propaganda and illegitimate action. Consequently, you are hereby directed to enforce a total shutdown of gas and crude supply to the refinery effective immediately. Injury to one, injury to all.”
The drastic step follows Dangote Refinery’s confirmation that it dismissed some workers, accusing them of sabotage. However, the sackings have since sparked nationwide outrage, with labour leaders accusing Africa’s largest refinery of trampling on workers’ rights.
PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo, told journalists that the refinery must reverse the mass layoffs without delay. He warned that the association would escalate industrial action if the disengaged workers were not reinstated.
The Dangote Refinery, which boasts a 650,000-barrel-per-day capacity and is considered central to Nigeria’s energy security, now faces its sternest labour test barely months into operations.
