S.O.S ALIEME

Some time ago, just about two weeks or there about, the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and the Dangote Group of Companies were involved in a face-off in what could be regarded as a fight for justice on the part of NUPENG and economic power on the part of Dangote Group. When two elephants fight, the grass will always suffer.  NUPENG and Dangote are two big elephants and when they fight the Nigerian people will always suffer for it.  No wonder, the Minister of Labour and Employment scheduled a tripartite meeting to resolve the dispute between the Management of Dangote Group and the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), over alleged anti-union practices.

To avert the planned nationwide industrial action by oil workers, the meeting was rescheduled because of its importance. Although, the reasons for the time change were not immediately disclosed, sources said it was aimed at halting the strike before it inflicted significant damage on the fragile economy.  It was gathered that NUPENG accused Aliko Dangote and his associates of pursuing dangerous anti-union practices, a monopolistic agenda, and indecent industrial relations strategies.  The NUPENG alleged that Dangote Refinery pays some of the lowest wages in the oil and gas sector and treats staff beneath acceptable standards. NUPENG also faulted the company’s recruitment conditions, which bar drivers from joining oil and gas unions, describing them as a violation of Section 40 of the Nigerian Constitution, the Labour Act and ILO Conventions 98 and 87.  This marks a dangerous road to fascism in industrial relations, where workers are treated as slaves without voice or dignity.

In a related development, the Nigeria Labour Congress threw its full weight behind NUPENG in its face-off with Dangote Group, directing workers nationwide to prepare for solidarity action urging the Federal Government to call Aliko Dangote and his associates to order, insisting that their operations must comply with national and international labour laws. It was gathered from well-meaning Nigerians that Aliko Dangote and his associates have been involved in serious anti-union practices, monopolistic agenda, and indecent industrial relations strategies.  It must be realized that this is not the first complaint Nigerians are receiving against Dangote Group. All the complaints have been on the same acts of impunity and unfair labour practices. 

It can be said that the revelations contained in NUPENG’s statement represent not just an attack on petroleum workers, but a full-blown declaration of war against the Nigerian working class, trade unions and the principle of decent work.  It exposes what has long been the questionable hallmark of the Dangote Group; a consistent record of union-busting, exploitative labour practices and monopolistic capture of markets to the detriment of both workers and the Nigerian people.  It was also gathered from sources (although might not be reliable) that Dangote Refinery pays one of the lowest wages in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria today and treats its staff members beneath acceptable standards.  People are saying that Dangote Group’s business model clearly enslaves and is not in any way developmental. 

The Nigerian people were promised that the Dangote Refinery and associated operations would create jobs, deepen industrialization and promote national self-sufficiency.  Instead, what we are witnessing today could be likened to the classic playbook of primitive capitalism as the group resorts to monopolistic capture.  It is using state backing to eliminate competition and dominate entire sectors (cement, sugar, flour and now petroleum products).  It is boasting already of its rooting in the power structure and preparedness to continue using it against the unions.  This attitude has systematically denied workers their constitutional right to freedom of association by preventing them from joining trade unions of their choice, forcing them into ‘company unions’ designed to weaken collective power.

In a further enquiry, it was gathered that Dangote companies thrive on casualization, poor wages, and unsafe working conditions; all in direct violation of the International Labour Organisation’s Decent Work agenda to which Nigeria is a signatory and in contradiction to the promise which Dangote holds on paper. The group believes that Nigerian workers are helpless because there is nothing the government can do against its various violations. Dangote believes in employing foreign nationals to the detriment of Nigerian workers. We remember the case of the Asian welders and fitters that were recruited from India and others while capable Nigerian welders and fitters languished in the unemployment queue. Unfortunately, these thousands of workers were not treated fairly and some of them came to us for remediation.

This is definitely not how to be patriotic by a group that received all manners of waivers and concessions from the nation’s coffers. Nigerians are seriously expecting Dangote Group to lower costs of items they produce but instead of lowering costs for Nigerians, the Dangote monopoly exploits scarcity and control of distribution to raise prices, thereby deepening poverty and hardship. This is not industrialization; it is economic sabotage. It is not nation-building; it is class robbery, where the working masses subsidize the obscene wealth of rich families through exploitation and manipulation in cahoots with cronies in government.

By seeking to recruit drivers under the condition that they must not belong to NUPENG or any union in the oil and gas industry, this is a dangerous road to fascism in industrial relations, where workers are treated as slaves without voice or dignity. The NLC, in full solidarity with NUPENG, declares that they will not stand by while one conglomerate seeks to enslave the Nigerian working class and trample on the hard-won rights of unions. The scale of workers’ rights violations is growing alarmingly and they are poised to ensure that it is contained if nothing is done by the government to sanction the group and make it act more responsibly.

I think the Dangote Group should be appealed to, so that the Nigerian people or poor masses can breathe.  Nigerians will not be able to cope with more economic hardships which can make things worse for them.  The immediate unionization of not just Dangote Refinery but all the other entities within the group is hereby advocated. The Federal Government and its regulatory institutions, especially the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Authority, should understand that history will hold them complicit if they continue to look the other way while a few individuals privatize the nation’s energy future and enslave its workforce.  Nigerian people are implored to see through the deception: this is not philanthropy, it is plunder; it is not development, it is dispossession and enslavement.

NUPENG and Dangote Group should sheath their sword and allow peace to reign. Nigerian workers are not slaves and cannot be serially abused without consequences. Our Constitution and international conventions guarantee our right to organize, collectively bargain, and defend our dignity at work. The working class must not be sacrificed on the altar of corporate greed.

God Bless Nigeria!!!