Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, has called on the Federal Government to intervene with the owner of Dangote Refineries, Aliko Dangote, over plans to force newly recruited drivers to sign agreements preventing them from joining existing unions in the oil and gas industry.

The National Union of Petroleum and Gas Workers had earlier directed its members in the oil and gas sector to embark on an indefinite strike starting Monday, September 9, 2025.

The strike is in protest of Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s alleged plan to compel new drivers to sign undertakings prohibiting them from belonging to any union in the industry.

In a statement released on Sunday, Falana said the policy of the Dangote Group contravenes Section 40 of the Constitution, Section 12 of the Trade Union Act, and Article 10 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act.

He further stated that the policy violates the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and the Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) of the International Labour Organization, as well as the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, all of which Nigeria has ratified.

“In view of the legal obligations imposed on the Federal Government of Nigeria by the Constitution, Trade Union Act, and international law to respect the fundamental rights of workers to freedom of association, the Registrar of Trade Unions should call Dangote Petroleum Refinery to order without delay.

“At the same time, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission should halt the monopolistic practices of the Dangote Group forthwith, as they violate the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act of 2018.

“Even though powerful trade unions exist in all capitalist countries, including the United Kingdom and the United States, the Dangote Group appears determined to undermine trade unions in Nigeria because it has been allowed to operate outside the ambit of the law.

“However, the Dangote Group should be reminded that the struggle of Nigerian workers to unionize was fought and won under the British colonial regime. To that extent, we support the strike of the National Union of Petroleum and Gas Workers against the policy of the Dangote Group, which seeks to erode the rights of Nigerian workers to unionize,” Falana stated. (The PUNCH)

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