PENGASSAN begins indefinite nationwide strike Monday over sack of 800 workers at Dangote refinery …shuts down all operations nationwide

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has ordered an indefinite nationwide shutdown of oil and gas operations following the alleged sack of over 800 of its members by Dangote Refinery.
Members nationwide are to commence a full blown strike from Monday. 
The association’s National Executive Council (NEC), after an emergency meeting on Saturday, September 27, 2025, directed all members across the country to withdraw their services beginning Sunday, September 28, in protest against what it described as a “brazen assault on workers’ rights.”
According to PENGASSAN, the refinery’s decision to terminate the contracts of Nigerian workers for joining the union, while replacing them with over 2,000 foreign nationals, mostly Indians, amounts to a deliberate violation of Nigeria’s labour laws and the Constitution.
“This is an affront to all Nigerian workers, and a slap in the face of the nation that has provided Dangote with unprecedented incentives at taxpayers’ expense,” the union declared in the communique signed by its General Secretary, Lumumba Okugbawa.
The NEC described the development as the worst form of industrial enslavement ever witnessed in the country’s oil and gas sector, accusing Dangote Refinery of subjecting Nigerians to “deplorable working conditions” before terminating their employment en masse.
“No man or company, no matter how highly placed, is above the law. The time has come for our national institutions to rein in this impunity,” Okugbawa stressed.
As part of its resolution, PENGASSAN directed all members working in field locations, control rooms, panel operations, and outfield assignments to down tools from 06:00hrs on Sunday.
It noted that by Monday, September 29, the shutdown should extend to all offices, companies, institutions, and agencies nationwide.
“All processes involving gas and crude supply to Dangote Refinery are to cease with immediate effect. International Oil Companies must also ramp down production and halt supplies to the refinery and its petrochemicals division,” the union ordered.
PENGASSAN also issued a stern warning that no intervention or interference would be tolerated at field locations, except in situations where the safety of personnel and assets could be compromised, and only with clearance from its National Secretariat.
The NEC called on its members and the wider labour movement to remain united, noting that the sacked staff and their families had been unjustly victimised. “An injury to one is an injury to all,” the communique reminded.
Beyond industrial action, the union urged members to hold continuous 24-hour prayer sessions, seeking divine intervention. “Our prayer point should be for God Almighty to give courage to those in authority to compel Dangote and his collaborators to obey the laws of Nigeria,” Okugbawa said.
Reactions from affected workers have been swift, with many describing the move as devastating. “We gave our sweat and years of service, only to be thrown out because we chose to join a union. It is painful and unjust,” one of the dismissed employees has lamented in an interview with Daily Sun.
Stakeholders across the economy have equally warned that the shutdown could trigger disruptions in the supply chain, with ripple effects across the economy.
Meanwhile PENGASSAN has insisted that it will not reverse its decision until justice is served. “No man is bigger than our country. We will not fold our arms while Nigerians are enslaved in their own land,” Okugbawa stressed.