The Forum of Concerned Nigerian Consumers has appealed to the Federal Government to intervene in the ongoing rift between the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, warning that the union’s threat to shut down operations could jeopardise Nigeria’s energy stability.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Sunday, the Forum’s National President, Olabisi Taiwo, described the union’s action as “a desperate attempt to undermine the country’s biggest energy project,” adding that the move could throw Nigeria back into another round of fuel scarcity.
“The government must send a clear message. Industrial blackmail will not be tolerated. The Dangote Refinery is our best chance at energy independence, and we must not allow vested interests to destroy it,” Taiwo said.
The group accused PENGASSAN of playing politics with the nation’s fragile energy sector, warning that any disruption to the $20 billion refinery’s operations could worsen economic instability and frustrate ongoing reforms in the oil industry.
“They resisted reforms, blocked privatisation, and crippled fuel supply with strikes in the past. Their actions contributed to the rot that turned our refineries into relics of corruption and mismanagement,” the Forum added.
The Dangote Refinery, with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, is the world’s largest single-train refinery and currently employs over 3,000 Nigerians. Management had earlier clarified that recent internal restructuring was aimed at addressing “acts of sabotage” and not an attack on labour rights.
However, PENGASSAN, in a circular signed by its General Secretary, Lumumba Okugbawa, accused the company of unlawfully dismissing about 800 workers for joining the union.
The association vowed to embark on a nationwide strike starting Monday, declaring, “An injury to one is an injury to all. No man is bigger than our country.”
The Forum, however, faulted the union’s defiance of a subsisting court order restraining any industrial action, describing it as “union overreach” and a breach of the rule of law.
“Who benefits if the refinery fails?” the Forum asked. “Certainly not the Nigerian people, but fuel importers and rent seekers who profit from chaos.”
The consumer group urged the Ministries of Labour, Petroleum Resources, and Justice, as well as the Department of State Services, to wade in urgently to prevent disruption of operations at the refinery.
“Nigerians cannot afford another round of fuel queues and economic hardship. We appeal to the government to step in now before the situation escalates,” Taiwo said.
