The powers of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) to unionise workers shrinks further on Tuesday as employees of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Limited including freshly recruited drivers of 10,000 newly purchased CNG trucks jointly vowed and doubled down not to embrace membership of the Union which they described as “Greek gift”.
Speaking on behalf of the tanker drivers and refinery workers in Lekki on Wednesday, Taofeek Jimoh said the clause in the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the feuding parties on Tuesday September 9, 2025 clearly showed that only “willing” workers can be unionised. This development covertly neutralised the strength of the NUPENG to gain dominance or relevance at the facility.
Meanwhile, NUPENG was reported to have suspended its strike Tuesday evening following an agreement with the management of Dangote Refinery to recognise workers’ rights to unionise after the intervention of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Department of State Services, industry regulators and leaders of Organized Labour.
The collapse of NUPENG was not merely the result of Nigeria’s economic shifts in the petroleum industry value chain, Petroleum Industry Act, or the outright deregulation of the sector where fuel prices are determined by market forces, but it was NUPENG’s lack of coordination, archaic operational/negotiation tact, arrogance, administrative indiscretion and absence of due diligence of its leaders that caused them this latest embarrassing blow.
Taofeek who also corroborated what some stakeholders of Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) Branch of NUPENG said earlier on Tuesday during his chat with some energy correspondents on Wednesday said:
“The deregulation of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector is a transformative policy shift. The government’s goal is to tackle inefficiencies, attract investment, and create a market-driven operation where fuel prices are determined by market forces. Dangote Refinery as a major player in this sector has only validated and widened the progress made by the government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, particularly in his Renewed Hope Agenda.
“Today, I feel so proud as a tanker driver working for Dangote with an excellent pay package that speaks to my welfare, insurance, hazard allowances, world class safety kits, and other benefits without the involvement of any union or their so-called collective bargaining agreements. I am a University graduate and being a driver does not diminish me or strip me of my self- esteem, there is dignity in labour. This positive paradigm shift has shown that NUPENG is a scam to workers and whatever they are trying to claim to offer any staff here would be seen as a Greek gift, that is why everybody is seeing them as a plague to the work environment. The grandstanding can no longer work
“What finally messed up NUPENG was the clause in the Memorandum of Understanding which stated that only willing workers can be unionised, and from all indications no refinery workers or tanker drivers are showing interest to be unionised. Section 9(6) of the Labour Act, and ILO conventions ratified by Nigeria, forbids NUPENG or any other union to force union membership, because doing so they will be infringing on workers’ constitutional freedom to willfully associate. The world is evolving everyday, but NUPENG has refused to realize this simple fact, they are still depending on their old glory which no longer exists since the demise of late Chief Frank Ovie Kokori, a consummate organizer and administrator with integrity who knew his onions.
“I am clearly in agreement with those PTD stakeholders who advised local and international Labour organizations and the Ministry of Labour and Employment not to fall for the crocodile tears of NUPENG’s leadership as it is presently constituted. Organisations like IndustriALL Global Union, TUC, NLC, ITUC-Africa, NARRO, PENGASSAN, PETROAN, NOGASSA, CANMPSSAN, TGTSSAN, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) etc, should not fall for the antics, manipulations and sentiments at all. There is no truth in the propaganda pushed by NUPENG that Dangote Group and MRS Holdings are engaged in anti-union practices, monopolistic agenda, or indecent industrial relations strategies.
“My valid poser to these Labour organizations is that they should ask NUPENG why they are fighting workers in their thousands, who are simply members of Direct Trucking Company Drivers Association (DTCDA) and the Association of Distributors and Transporters of Petroleum Products, (ADITOP). Meanwhile, these are also critical stakeholders in the oil and gas sector. However NUPENG that is presently crying blue murder and accusing Dangote of monopoly has been seen to be so toxic and intolerant to other stakeholders in the country. These double standards should be condemned in its entirety and should never be allowed to fly.
“Nigerians should therefore appreciate how Dangote group has outlined the major infrastructure moves in the country’s business climate, including the Petroleum industry downstream sector. Infact Dangote should be celebrated for taking the risk of purchasing 10,000 environmentally-friendly CNG trucks to make distribution of petroleum products seamless, effective and efficient without hiccups.
“Those newly purchased trucks will definitely reduce the cost of diesel. They will reduce the fumes that come from burning diesel, will ensure faster delivery/journey times, less accidents, and guarantee supply reliability and more importantly they are insured.
“There is nothing like monopolisation in Dangote’s business, what we can see is better regulation and supply efficiency, The question Nigerians should ask is that have we had disruption since 2024? Dangote is practically taking off the entire Sub-Saharan African market. He exported 1.3 billion litres of petrol in June and July. For the first time, he exported petrol to the United States of America. The performance of the refinery speaks for itself, So the question is, has there been reliability of supply and assurance of supply? Dangote is supplying the market and there’s reliability. Government should consider the option of proscribing NUPENG instead of listening to their gibberish.
“I must also thank senior officials of DSS and the Ministry of Labour and Employment for their firm stand of not allowing NUPENG to plunge Nigeria into a fresh round of economic crisis and for their resolve to make Nigeria’s business climate to be friendly, healthy and attractive to both local and foreign investors. We need more refineries in the country and we want more players who can depopulate the unemployment market just like Dangote and we don’t want any resistance to this progressive and fruitful move. Again NUPENG must remember that unionism is not by force but has been made optional and in Dangote Refinery workers have rejected them like hot potatoes.”
