The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has suspended its nationwide strike against the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, following the intervention of the Federal Government.
PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo, announced the decision on Wednesday in Abuja at a news conference, warning that the suspension is only temporary.
The union took the action after marathon negotiations with government and refinery representatives that extended into the early hours of Wednesday.
The strike, which began on Sunday over alleged anti-union practices at the refinery, had paralyzed parts of Nigeria’s oil and gas operations before the temporary truce was reached.
The union president said the decision followed intense intervention by the Federal Government that paved the way for the truce.
Osifo said the union was taking the “moral high ground” by bowing to government persuasion despite strong doubts about the sincerity of the Dangote Group.
He said: “We are only suspending, not calling off this strike. If any part of this agreement is broken, we will not give any warning. We will immediately resume our suspended industrial action.”
He stressed that the industrial action was rooted in the fundamental right of workers to freedom of association, insisting that members joined the union “to secure better welfare and fair pay.”
PENGASSAN said it is still unhappy with portions of the agreement reached under the Ministry of Labour’s supervision. The union issued a clear warning: its patience in suspending the strike should not be mistaken for weakness.
Osifo added: “Yes, we understand that Dangote does not respect the rules of engagement. Yes, we understand that Dangote wants to prove that he is always bigger than the rules and above the law. Yes, we understand that today, we still have some members working within the confines of the refinery.
“Yes, today, we still have some members working in some companies within the group. Yes, we know or we believe or we suspect that some of the things that the government has asked Dangote to do, that he’s going to slip in it and won’t do them just as he did it to NUPENG. We have our suspicion.
“We truly don’t believe that he will keep to his own side of the bargain. We truly don’t believe that he will live up to expectations. We don’t believe. But because we have respect for institutions, because we have respect for government, because we have respect for processes, and because we have respect for procedures.
“And because of those in government who sat up till almost 4 a.m. this morning to try and resolve this subject, the NEC has decided to listen to them.
“Even with our mutual suspicion that Dangote will not do what is right, even with our misgivings that the document did not clearly represent what we have asked for.”
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