The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has declared former President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Adams Oshiomhole, persona non grata following his recent comments condemning the strike action by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).
Oshiomhole, during an interview on Arise Television last Friday, had described the strike by PENGASSAN against the Dangote Refinery as “ill-considered,” urging labour unions to give new investors like Dangote time to stabilise before mounting industrial pressure.
“In pursuing war, you have to recognise that the tools you deploy must not hurt innocent people, like the tomato sellers who cannot get fuel to move their goods because there is a quarrel between one refinery and one union,” Oshiomhole said. “An employer has to exist, mature, and be strong enough to guarantee good-paying jobs. If you cripple a business before it even finds its feet, you are also destroying the jobs you claim to protect.”
But NUPENG, in a strongly worded statement jointly signed by its President, Williams Akporeha, and General Secretary, Olawale Afolabi, expressed shock at Oshiomhole’s remarks, accusing him of betraying the very principles he once championed 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 as punishment for exercising their fundamental right of unionism,” the statement read.
The union said the declaration means Oshiomhole would no longer be recognised or allowed to participate in any of its programmes or events.
“The practical effect of our declaration is that henceforth, we will not participate in or lend legitimacy to any event featuring Senator Oshiomhole,” it added.
NUPENG also urged the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC), and other civil society organisations to take note of what it described as Oshiomhole’s “betrayal of the working class.”
“Oshiomhole’s denunciation and insensitivity to the plight of 800 engineers is a dangerous toxin designed to weaken the resolve of the working class and strengthen the class enemy,” the union stated. “His undistinguished position on the PENGASSAN strike qualifies him as the Judas Iscariot of Nigerian trade unionism.”
The statement also advised the former NLC president to “retire from commenting on labour matters” as he has “irretrievably lost the moral right and legitimacy before Nigerian workers, particularly those in the oil and gas sector.”
The controversy stems from PENGASSAN’s recent strike action, which was suspended last Wednesday over the alleged unjust dismissal of hundreds of workers by the Dangote Refinery.
