The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has declared former Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) president and current senator, Adams Oshiomhole, persona non grata for criticising the recent strike by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) against the Dangote Refinery.
Oshiomhole, during an interview on Arise Television last Friday, described the industrial action as “ill-considered,” urging labour unions to allow new investors like Dangote time to stabilise before facing union pressure.
“In pursuing war, you must ensure the tools you deploy don’t hurt innocent people, like tomato sellers who can’t move their goods because there’s a quarrel between a refinery and a union,” Oshiomhole said. “If you cripple a business before it finds its feet, you destroy the very jobs you claim to protect.”
But NUPENG, in a strongly worded statement jointly signed by its President, Williams Akporeha, and General Secretary, Olawale Afolabi, accused Oshiomhole of betraying the very ideals he once represented as a labour leader.
“The leadership of NUPENG hereby declares Senator Adams Oshiomhole persona non grata within the ranks of Nigerian oil and gas workers for his undistinguished denunciation of the PENGASSAN strike against the unjustifiable sack of 800 engineers for exercising their fundamental right to unionism,” the statement read.
The union stated that Oshiomhole would no longer be recognised or welcomed at any of its events or activities, adding that members would boycott any gathering featuring him.
NUPENG also called on the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), and civil society groups to take note of what it described as Oshiomhole’s “betrayal of the working class.”
“Oshiomhole’s comments are a dangerous toxin aimed at weakening workers’ resolve and emboldening the oppressor,” the union said. “His undistinguished position on the PENGASSAN strike qualifies him as the Judas Iscariot of Nigerian trade unionism.”
The statement further advised Oshiomhole to refrain from commenting on labour issues, arguing that he has “irretrievably lost the moral right and legitimacy before Nigerian workers, especially those in the oil and gas sector.”
The controversy follows PENGASSAN’s recent strike over the alleged unjust dismissal of hundreds of engineers by the Dangote Refinery, a dispute that was suspended last Wednesday.
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