By Michael Oche
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has directed all its affiliate unions to commence immediate mobilisation in preparation for a possible nationwide strike against the Dangote Group, accusing the conglomerate of anti-worker practices and serial violations of labour rights.
In an internal memo signed by NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, the congress alleged that the Dangote Group has continued to operate “as a state within a state,” flouting Section 40 of the Nigerian Constitution, ILO Conventions 87 and 98, as well as national labour laws.
The NLC described Dangote’s facilities as “plantations of exploitation” where workers’ dignity is trampled upon in the pursuit of profit.
It said the ongoing conflict with the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) was only “a symptom of a deeper sickness” in the company’s industrial relations approach.
According to the memo, all affiliate unions, including NUPENG, NUEE, MWUN, NUFBTE, SEWUN and others, have been placed on full alert and directed to set up Action Mobilisation Committees within 72 hours to coordinate logistics, strategy, and communication with the NLC Secretariat.
The labour centre insisted that its objective is to compel the Dangote Group to unconditionally respect workers’ right to freely join unions, end intimidation and victimisation, and submit to national labour institutions.
“The blood and sweat of Nigerian workers built this conglomerate; we will not let it become a monument to their oppression,” the memo declared.
If carried out, the industrial action could mark one of the fiercest confrontations between organised labour and the Dangote Group in recent years.
The memo reads further, “Each union is to set up an Action Mobilisation Committee and liaise directly with the NLC National Secretariat within the next 72 hours to coordinate strategy, logistics, and communication. Unity of purpose and action is non-negotiable.”
“The impunity of the Dangote Group must be met with the resistance of organised labour. No amount of media verbiage and paid hirelings will stop us from fighting for our liberty in the face of apparent Regulatory capture where the state seems to have abdicated its responsibility to hold this behemoth accountable for its breaches of our laws”, it added.
