By John Umeh
The National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has suspended its two-day strike following a breakthrough meeting with the Dangote Group on Tuesday.
Confirming the development, NUPENG President, Williams Akporeha, revealed that the Dangote refinery management, led by Sayyu Dantata, agreed to allow its tanker drivers to unionise. The meeting was reportedly convened by the Department of State Services (DSS) to resolve the standoff.
“We have suspended the strike. The Dangote refinery has agreed to unionise its drivers. We signed an agreement,” Akporeha told our correspondent via phone.
The strike, which began on Monday, saw petroleum tanker drivers withdraw from loading fuel nationwide in protest over the Dangote refinery’s alleged move to bar drivers of its 4,000 trucks from joining NUPENG. The industrial action triggered widespread fuel scarcity, with depots in Lagos, Warri, and Port Harcourt shutting down operations.
Despite earlier appeals from the Federal Government to suspend the strike, union members fully complied with the directive to halt fuel lifting. Many depots were left idle as drivers parked their trucks awaiting further instructions.
With Tuesday’s agreement, normal operations are expected to resume across the country, easing the pressure on filling stations and motorists.
