The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has clarified that it did not sign the communiqué that ended its nationwide strike against the Dangote Refinery.
The union suspended its industrial action, which began on Sunday, on Wednesday following the intervention of the Federal Government, but insisted that its demands were not fully met.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday, PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo, said the document presented at the conciliatory meeting was not an agreement.
“If you see that communiqué, we did not sign it. Normally, it is supposed to be signed by three parties. We did not sign because we felt that some things in it were not okay with us,” he explained.
Osifo stressed that the communiqué was merely a statement issued by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammadu Dingyadi, who served as the chief conciliator.
“When we subjected it to our NEC, we had to decide on priorities. Some media houses claimed we were only interested in check-off dues. That is false. What we prioritised was how our members would return to work and provide for their families,” he added.
PENGASSAN accused the refinery of illegally sacking over 800 Nigerian workers and replacing them with more than 2,000 expatriates from India. The union insists that the refinery must immediately reinstate the disengaged workers.
Osifo also dismissed allegations from the refinery that the sacked employees had engaged in sabotage, describing the claim as “totally incorrect.”
“The release that Dangote made on workers sabotaging the economy was totally incorrect. If we had allowed that sabotage tag to stand, those 800 people would not be able to secure jobs in the future. That stigma would remain forever. Clearing that was a very big win,” he said.
Strike may resume
While acknowledging that some progress was made after the federal government’s intervention, Osifo warned that PENGASSAN would not hesitate to resume industrial action if the resolutions are not implemented.
“If Dangote does not do the needful, our tools are always available. We will never get tired of struggling for what is right. We have been around for 50 years before the Dangote Refinery came on stream,” he declared.
The 9am News report notes that this dispute underscores ongoing tensions over labour rights, local job protection, and expatriate staffing practices in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
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