Nigerians are getting slammed with higher petrol prices again—because, shocker, the bigwigs at Dangote Refinery and PENGASSAN (that’s the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association, in case you don’t keep up with union drama) can’t get it together. Negotiations? Dead in the water.
They all supposedly met behind closed doors on Monday—Federal Government, Dangote, union reps—yeah, didn’t go anywhere. Festus Osifo, the top dog at PENGASSAN, basically shrugged and told DAILY POST, “impasse.” That’s it. That’s the update.
Meanwhile, in Abuja, folks woke up to even pricier fuel. Journalist goes around, checks some stations—boom, Ranoil and Empire in Gwarimpa, and another Ranoil on Kubwa Expressway, hiked prices up to N910, N920 per litre. That’s up from N890 just the other day. It’s like a bad joke that keeps getting less funny.
On top of that, PENGASSAN’s secretary, Lumumba Ighotemu, sent out a memo to the union Monday night: strike’s still on. They’re furious over Dangote firing a mess of Nigerian workers—allegedly for simply being PENGASSAN members. The union’s digging in their heels, telling everyone to ignore any “fake news” unless it comes straight from HQ. Questions? Take it up with the higher-ups, they say.
If you think that’s the end, no—this whole mess is spilling out. Dangote’s refusing to budge, not even talking about bringing back the sacked workers. They won’t say how many lost their jobs, but they aren’t denying it happened either. The Nigerian Union of Labour Congress is now backing PENGASSAN, and so is the Trade Union of Nigeria. So, yeah, the strike’s spreading.
As for the government, they’re… well, who knows. They talked big about getting involved, but as of now? Crickets. Minister of Labour, Muhammad Dingyadi, did his “let’s all get along” speech, but it’s not like that’s ever moved mountains.
Tried to get more info from the Ministry’s spokesperson, Patience Onuobia. Nada.
Petrol Marketers: Blame the Chaos
Abubakar Maigandi, who heads up the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association, says the whole price spike is because of the Dangote-PENGASSAN standoff. He’s basically begging the government to step in and fix this before everyone loses their minds. People are panic-buying, prices are shooting up, and he’s just hoping it doesn’t last long. Cross your fingers, I guess?
PENGASSAN’s Shutdown Spree
PENGASSAN isn’t just messing with Dangote. On Monday, they went after the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, and the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority in Abuja. Basically, if it has to do with oil, they’re shutting it down.
Court Drama
And, of course, there’s a courtroom twist. Justice Emmanuel Danjuma Subilim handed Dangote Refinery a temporary “stop PENGASSAN from striking” order. PENGASSAN’s response? “What court order? Never heard of it.” They’re still on strike.
So yeah, that’s where things stand: fuel prices are up, unions are digging in, Dangote’s not blinking, and the government’s just… somewhere. Welcome to Nigeria, where filling your tank is now an extreme sport.
