Fuel scarcity imminent as NLC backs NUPENG strike against Dangote

Nigeria may be bracing for a possible fuel scarcity as the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) declared full support for the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) in its standoff with the Dangote Group, signaling a nationwide showdown.

NUPENG has announced an indefinite strike starting tomorrow, accusing the conglomerate of anti-union practices, monopolistic tendencies, and indecent industrial relations.

In a strongly worded statement, NLC President Joe Ajaero warned that organised labour will not allow “one conglomerate to enslave the Nigerian working class and trample on hard-won union rights.”

The NLC called on the Federal Government to immediately caution Aliko Dangote and Sayyu Dantata, insisting that their companies must comply with Nigerian labour laws and international conventions.

According to Ajaero, the NLC has received multiple complaints from its affiliates alleging systematic union-busting and exploitative practices within Dangote companies.

“This is not the first time we are receiving such complaints,” the statement read. “What we see is a consistent pattern of union suppression, casualisation, poor wages, and unsafe working conditions, all in violation of the ILO Decent Work agenda.”

The NLC further alleged that Dangote Refinery pays one of the lowest wages in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector and employs foreign nationals in roles Nigerians can handle. It also accused the group of using its dominant position to eliminate competition and manipulate prices, deepening hardship for citizens.

“Instead of lowering costs for Nigerians, the Dangote monopoly exploits scarcity and control of distribution to raise prices, thereby worsening poverty,” the NLC said, describing the company’s operations as ‘economic sabotage’ rather than industrialisation.

The labour centre condemned Dangote’s reported policy of recruiting drivers on the condition that they avoid joining NUPENG or any oil and gas union, calling it a violation of Section 40 of the Nigerian Constitution, the Labour Act, and ILO Conventions 87 and 98 on the right to organise and bargain collectively.

“If this is allowed to stand, powerful capital will openly defy Nigerian laws, enslave workers, and destroy collective bargaining,” the NLC warned.

NLC Threatens Nationwide Action

Ajaero directed all state councils and industrial unions to prepare for solidarity action, stressing that the NLC will “move beyond words to action” if the Dangote Group does not reverse its anti-labour stance.

“We will resist every attempt to roll back workers’ rights. If Dangote persists on this reckless path, we will mobilise workers nationwide to defend their dignity and Nigeria’s economic future,” the statement declared.

The NLC urged regulatory agencies, particularly the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Authority, to act swiftly, warning that history will hold them complicit if they allow “a few individuals to privatise the nation’s energy future and enslave its workforce.”

“The attack on NUPENG is an attack on us all,” the NLC said. “This is not philanthropy, it is plunder; not development, it is dispossession. Our solidarity is not negotiable. We will fight because we must.”