Thousands of demonstrators flooded the streets of Kaduna on Monday in a sweeping protest against what they described as deliberate sabotage of Nigeria’s local refining efforts, centering on the escalating dispute between the Dangote Refinery and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).
Organized under the banner of Partners for National Economic Progress (PANEP), the protest was themed “National Unity Against Sabotage: Reclaiming Our Petroleum Sector for the People.” Protesters marched through major arteries of the city — including Alkali Road, Ahmadu Bello Way, and Muhammadu Buhari Way — waving placards with messages such as “Protect Local Refining,” “End Fuel Import Cartel,” and “Support Dangote Refinery.”
Comrade Igwe Ude-Umanta, a leading voice in the movement, declared the protest part of a nationwide campaign that began in Abuja on October 2. “This struggle is against the cartel that destroyed our public refineries, killed the textile industry, and now wants to strangle the Dangote Refinery. We will not let them succeed,” he said to thunderous applause.
The protest comes amid rising tensions between Dangote Refinery and PENGASSAN, following allegations of mass sackings of unionized workers and their replacement with foreign nationals. PENGASSAN had earlier declared a nationwide strike, prompting federal intervention. Protest leaders accused the union of colluding with fuel importers to undermine local production, branding their actions as “economic terrorism.”
Comrade Dahiru Maishanu, another rally speaker, called for the arrest of PENGASSAN leadership, stating, “What PENGASSAN did was not unionism — it was sabotage. We cannot allow people to hide under labour unions to commit crimes against our economy.”
PANEP urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who also serves as Minister of Petroleum Resources, to ensure that local refineries receive crude oil at the same price offered to foreign refiners. “This is key to sustaining the refinery and boosting investor confidence,” the group said in a statement read at the rally.