…Advises Stakeholders To Ignore Union’s Threat
The Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) Branch of NUPENG has called on President Bola Tinubu GCFR to urgently rein in the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria’s (PENGASSAN) shenanigans, just as it accused the union’s leadership of overstepping its mandate and threatening to destroy the milestones recorded by Dangote Refinery and petrochemicals; a key player in the country’s petroleum downstream sector.
PTD also assured Nigerians and other industry stakeholders that there was no cause for alarm, noting that PENGASSAN’s threat of industrial action in Nigeria’s petroleum downstream sector should be ignored, stressing that the PENGASSAN had lost its relevance just like its sister union and junior staff NUPENG who was currently wallowing in oblivion and disrepute.
These assertions were contained in a statement the drivers issued in Abuja and made available to newsmen on Friday by one Comrade Obi-Dede Wonder on behalf of PTD elders. The statement disclosed that Nigerians should pay no attention to the lies, innuendos, and propaganda being peddled by PENGASSAN. It maintained that there was nothing like unjust termination of over 800 Nigerian workers by Dangote Refinery.
“PENGASSAN’s lamentation that the purportedly sacked qualified workers in Dangote’s Refinery were replaced with over 2,000 Indian workers, many of whom lack valid immigration documentation was not just fallacious but a reflection of failure from a union who relish in cheap blackmail to seek pecuniary gains and gratifications from its paid masters. When did PENGASSAN become immigration personnel that now profiles foreigners who come in or go out of Nigeria?” PTD queried.
The drivers further said that the Management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals had accurately set the record straight by maintaining it was only embarking on re-organisation within its workforce which was non discriminatory, but largely aimed at strengthening operations, and to address repeated acts of sabotage within its multi-billion-dollar facility.
“Contrary to the falsehoods bandied by PENGASSAN, the Refinery’s Management has openly revealed that more than 3,000 Nigerians, despite the re-organisation exercise, have continued to work actively at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery. Meanwhile, it is the constitutional right of Dangote or any employer for that matter to hire or fire especially when it notices some actions or inactions that could jeopardize it’s activities or compromise the company’s effort of engendering energy efficiency and security in accordance with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda as enshrined in the Petroleum Industry Act.
“We expect PENGASSAN and NUPENG to calm down and carefully go through the PIA and stop stirring up the hornet’s nest at every given opportunity to satisfy their distasteful fantasies. We call on all Nigerians, therefore, to stand against PENGASSAN and its ilk and also stop them from the exploitation of Nigeria’s workforce through collection off-check dues that are not justifiable, but only to be displaying a penchant for undermining our national priorities for their pecuniary gains. All relevant stakeholders must rise to the action, and shame these economic saboteurs.
“We the Tanker Drivers firmly stand with the decision reached by the management of Dangote Refinery which is in the best interest of the Refinery as a result of intermittent cases of sabotage in the various units of the Refinery with dire consequences on human life and related safety concerns. We also commend the facility for remaining vigilant to their internal systems and vulnerabilities to ensure the long-term stability of the strategic national asset.
“It is of utmost importance for them to protect the Refinery for the benefit of Nigerians especially our drivers who are gainfully employed by the enviable facility, their partners across Africa, and the thousands of people whose livelihoods depend on it. We urge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, National Assembly, relevant law enforcement agents, especially Police, DSS and NSCDC to rise to the occasion and stand with Dangote Refinery so that the subsidy thieves and their surrogates who are now jobless and stranded will not ruin the sustainable peace, breakthrough and prosperity Dangote Refinery have brought to the country’s petroleum industry” the statement noted.
PTD however used the opportunity to further commend the management of Dangote Refinery for reassuring employees and stakeholders in reaffirming its commitment to internationally accepted labour principles, including workers’ freedom to decide on union membership without interference.
Recall the Refinery in its earlier defence for its legal and managerial action in its workforce emphasised that the exercise was an audit process to safeguard the long-term stability of what it described as a strategic national asset and to uphold the highest standards of safety, transparency, and accountability. The company also stated that the reorganization had become necessary following intermittent cases of sabotage within the facility, which created safety risks and disrupted operations.
