PENGASSAN Says No Agreement with Dangote Refinery,Strike May Resume

PENGASSAN Says No Agreement with Dangote Refinery, Strike May Resume

 

 

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has clarified that it did not sign the communiqué that temporarily ended its nationwide strike at the Dangote Refinery.

 

The union suspended the strike, which began on Sunday, following Federal Government intervention on Wednesday, but insisted that key issues remained unresolved.

 

PENGASSAN had accused Dangote Refinery of unlawfully terminating over 800 Nigerian workers and allegedly replacing them with more than 2,000 Indian staff.

 

Addressing reporters in Abuja, PENGASSAN President Festus Osifo warned that the industrial action could resume without notice if the refinery failed to implement agreed resolutions.

 

Osifo admitted the communiqué contained “grey areas” but noted that the union acted in good faith in suspending the strike. Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, he said the document presented at the meeting was not a formal agreement.

 

“If you see that communiqué, we did not sign it. Normally, it should be signed by three parties. We refused because some issues were not acceptable to us,” Osifo said.

 

He explained that the communiqué was a statement from the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammadu Dingyadi, who served as the chief conciliator.

 

“When we took it to our National Executive Council (NEC), we had to set priorities. Some media outlets claimed we were only interested in check-off dues – that is false. Our priority was ensuring members could safely return to work,” he added.

 

Osifo insisted that Dangote management must immediately reinstate the dismissed workers. He disclosed that the refinery initially resisted reabsorbing them until government mediation produced a compromise.

 

“The claim that workers sabotaged the refinery was completely wrong. Clearing that stigma was a major win for our members,” he said.

 

The PENGASSAN president reiterated that the union’s fight is not about self-interest but about protecting Nigerian workers’ rights. He warned that the union would not hesitate to resume strike action if the issues were ignored.

 

“If Dangote fails to do the needful, our tools are always available. We will never tire in defending what is right. PENGASSAN has been around for 50 years, long before the Dangote Refinery came on stream,” Osifo concluded.