Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Kaduna on Monday, halting movement across key areas in a mass protest in support of the Dangote Refinery, accusing a powerful oil import cartel and elements within the labour movement of plotting to cripple Nigeria’s local refining ambition.
The march, organised under the banner of Partners for National Economic Progress (PANEP), was themed “National Unity Against Sabotage: Reclaiming Our Petroleum Sector for the People.”
Protesters called on the Federal Government to act swiftly to “protect the multibillion-dollar refinery from systematic attacks” allegedly engineered by vested import interests.
The demonstrators gathered at Murtala Mohammed Square before marching through major streets, including Alkali Road, Ahmadu Bello Way, and Muhammadu Buhari Way.
They carried placards reading “Protect Local Refining,” “End Fuel Import Cartel,” and “Support Dangote Refinery.”
Speaking at the rally, one of the group’s leaders, Igwe Ude-Umanta, said the protest was 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,” he declared. “The days of holding Nigeria hostage are over.”
Ude-Umanta drew parallels between the collapse of Kaduna’s once-thriving textile sector and what he described as an emerging plot against the country’s refining industry.
“Kaduna used to be a textile hub before sabotage destroyed it. Now, they want to replicate that in our petroleum sector by frustrating local refining. We will resist them,” he said to thunderous applause.
He also accused the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) of colluding with fuel importers to undermine local production, branding their recent actions as “economic terrorism.”
PANEP demanded that the Federal Government either ban fuel importation outright or impose heavy tariffs to protect domestic refining and allied industries.
“Countries that place tariffs are not stupid; they are protecting their economies,” Ude-Umanta said. “Importers are scared because local refining will expose their corruption and price manipulation.”
Another protest leader, Dahiru Maishanu, accused the union of overstepping its bounds.
“What PENGASSAN did was not unionism, it was sabotage. The Federal Government should have arrested their leadership. You can’t hide under labour unions to commit crimes against the economy,” he said.
Protesters Call For Action
The group urged President Bola Tinubu, who also serves as Minister of Petroleum Resources, to intervene immediately and ensure that local refineries receive crude oil at the same rate offered to foreign refineries.
“President Tinubu must stamp his feet,” their statement read. “Local refineries must get crude at equal prices to foreign refiners, that’s the only way to sustain the industry and build investor confidence.”
Maishanu further accused the cartel of blocking the sale of locally produced Liquefied Petroleum Gas and Aviation Turbine Kerosene, allegedly to keep prices high and preserve monopoly profits.
“They are punishing Nigerians to protect their greed. Local refining threatens their control over pricing, that’s why they are desperate,” he added.
‘If Dangote Refinery Fails, Investors Will Flee’
The protesters praised the Dangote Refinery for already influencing the prices of Premium Motor Spirit and diesel, saying Nigerians were “finally breathing fresh air” due to local refining.
“This movement is about economic salvation,” Maishanu said. “If we allow them to kill the Dangote Refinery, no investor will ever risk bringing money into Nigeria again.”
The group concluded the Kaduna leg of its campaign by calling on the Federal Government to “crush every enemy of Nigeria’s economic progress” and take swift policy actions to protect the refining sector.
News360 Info reports that the rally came amid an ongoing industrial dispute between PENGASSAN and Dangote Refinery management.
Talks between both parties, which began on September 29, initially ended in a deadlock before a breakthrough was reached after a marathon negotiation chaired by Labour Minister Muhammad Dingyadi and held at the Office of the National Security Adviser.
PENGASSAN had accused the refinery of mass transfers and unfair sackings of union members while hiring foreign nationals, allegations the company denied.
The Federal Government intervened to prevent a shutdown, citing the dispute’s potential impact on national energy security.
