The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria has clarified that it did not sign the communiqué that ended its nationwide strike against the Dangote refinery.
The union suspended its strike, which began on Sunday, on Wednesday after the intervention of the Federal Government, but insisted that its concerns were not fully addressed.
PENGASSAN had accused the refinery of illegally sacking more than 800 Nigerian workers and allegedly replacing them with over 2,000 Indians.
Addressing journalists at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday, PENGASSAN President Festus Osifo warned that the strike could resume without notice if the refinery failed to honour the resolutions.
Osifo admitted there were “grey areas” in the communiqué but stressed that the union suspended the action in good faith.
Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Thursday, Osifo explained that the document presented at the 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 said.
He further noted that the communiqué was merely a statement from the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammadu Dingyadi, who acted 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.”
Osifo said PENGASSAN’s position remains that the refinery management should immediately reinstate the sacked workers.
He disclosed that Dangote initially refused to reabsorb the disengaged workers until the government intervened and pushed for a compromise, dismissing the refinery’s claims of sabotage by the affected employees.
“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. We are not perturbed in any way.”
Osifo added that the union’s struggle was not about self-interest but about protecting Nigerian workers whose employments were abruptly terminated for exercising their right to association.
He warned that PENGASSAN would not hesitate to resume industrial action if the issues were not addressed.
“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.
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