NUPENG Insists on Strike, Dismisses Dangote-Backed Truck Drivers

The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has reaffirmed its resolve to proceed with a nationwide strike over the refusal of Dangote Refinery to allow drivers of its imported compressed natural gas (CNG) trucks to join the union.

In a statement issued on Sunday, NUPENG President Williams Akporeha and General Secretary Afolabi Olawale said the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) branch will withdraw services and suspend petroleum lifting from depots across the country.

The union dismissed calls by the Direct Trucking Company Drivers Association (DTCDA) urging Nigerians to ignore the strike notice. NUPENG described the association as a creation of Dangote Refinery and its promoters, Aliko Dangote and Sayyu Dantata, allegedly designed to prevent 10,000 CNG truck drivers from joining the legally recognised union.

“The attention of the leadership of NUPENG has been drawn to a news report on ARISE Television and in some dailies, in which an unknown group calling itself the Direct Trucking Company Drivers Association asked Nigerians to disregard our strike notice,” the statement read. “We urge our members, the public, and the media to ignore DTCDA and its claims.”

NUPENG further alleged that the president of the DTCDA, Enoch Kanawa, is not a tanker driver but a lawyer with long-standing ties to Sayyu Dantata and MRS Energy. The union argued that the association is “management-inspired,” created to weaken workers’ collective bargaining rights.

According to NUPENG, DTCDA shares the same office address as MRS Energy Limited in Apapa, Lagos, reinforcing claims that it is not an independent body but a company-backed platform.

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The union stressed that there is no division within its ranks, adding: “Our solidarity remains constant. We will not allow any management-backed association to undermine the rights of workers to unionise under NUPENG.”

With the strike threat still in place, Nigerians may face fuel distribution disruptions in the coming days.