Dangote–PENGASSAN Dispute: Why Government Must Break Silence to Protect Nigeria’s Economic Future

When governments remain silent in moments of national tension, they risk creating dangerous precedents. That is what Nigeria faces today with the Dangote Refinery–PENGASSAN saga. For several days, the Federal Government has maintained silence, while the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) flexes its muscles. But silence is no longer an option.

History offers a lesson worth revisiting. In the United States between 1920 and 1945, union power reached its peak. American unionists grounded industries, staged strikes, and in some cases ignited riots that disrupted national stability. Yet, the U.S. government of the day drew a hard line. For the sake of economic primacy and industrial growth, it curtailed union excesses and ensured that capital and investments were safeguarded. That balance ultimately paved the way for America’s post-war boom and its rise as an economic powerhouse.

Nigeria stands at a similar crossroads today. What is happening around the Dangote Refinery is not merely a labor dispute, it is a fight against capital and investment. A refinery of that scale, financed with borrowed capital, represents more than just a private venture. It is a national economic lifeline. But when the average Nigerian worker, driven by resentment against capitalists, joins hands to sabotage or loot, the entire country loses.

Some argue that workers will protect the refinery because it provides their daily bread. Experience suggests otherwise. Too often, Nigerian workers or civil servants view national assets and private enterprises alike as a “national cake” to be shared. They justify looting or sabotage by claiming that employers are underpaying or that owners are themselves corrupt. The result is a cycle of destruction that undermines jobs, wealth creation, and long-term prosperity.

The Federal Government cannot afford neutrality. Capital and investment must be protected if Nigeria is to escape the tag of being the poverty capital of the world. PENGASSAN, like all unions, ultimately fights for the narrow interests of its members, not the broader Nigerian interest. The two must not be confused.

For Nigeria’s population to find jobs and for industries to expand, investors like Dangote must succeed. Those who doubt it should ask themselves: if unions truly believed in wealth creation, they themselves should pool their dues, invest, and bear the risks that entrepreneurs shoulder? Only then would they understand the sacrifices required to build enterprises that feed nations.

The truth is clear: the Federal Government must break its silence and act decisively. The protection of capital and investment is not about one refinery or one man; it is about the future of millions of Nigerians who depend on industry and private enterprise for survival. Without this protection, poverty will remain our enduring legacy.

The silence of the Nigerian government on the Dangote–PENGASSAN dispute threatens investor confidence and economic growth. History shows that protecting capital and investment is vital to job creation and national prosperity.

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