The Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD), an affiliate union of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), has officially disowned a group identifying itself as 'PTD Elders' amid an ongoing dispute with Dangote Refinery. The union has labeled the group as "fake impostors" allegedly hired to create discord within the organization.
Representatives from the Kaduna, Lagos, Port Harcourt, and Warri zones of the petroleum drivers' union made this declaration during a press briefing held on Friday, accusing the unidentified group of spreading misinformation to the public.
Comrade Bashir Izalan expressed surprise at the emergence of this group claiming affiliation with PTD-NUPENG. "We don't have anything like PTD Elders in the hierarchy of PTD-NUPENG. We don't know them. The only recognised national chairman we know is Comrade Egbon. His leadership is transparent; he gives us a sense of belonging because we can go anywhere in the country and feel at home. If we fall sick, we have insurance and hospitals where we would be treated," he stated.
Adding to these concerns, Itanola Abiodun emphasized that the alleged impostors have no legitimate connection to the union and called on security agencies to investigate and prosecute them. "Everybody who belongs to a union has a unit and zone where that unit is located. Then, they have the PTD branch. Those units where they claimed they come from do not exist. We in those zones do not know them. Their names are not known to us at all," Abiodun explained.
He further challenged the legitimacy of the group: "They should mention the units they belong to for discerning minds to vouch for their authenticity. They cannot even say the units or zone they belong to. They are not speaking for us. They are impostors, hired to wreak havoc in our union."
This development comes in the wake of a previous statement by Williams Akporeha and Afolabi Olawale, president and general secretary of NUPENG respectively, who last week warned the public and security agencies about the so-called PTD Elders Forum, describing them as infiltrators with sinister motives aimed at causing disaffection within the genuine leadership of the Tanker Drivers Branch of NUPENG.
Background of the Dangote Refinery Dispute
The controversy emerges against the backdrop of an ongoing dispute between NUPENG and Dangote Refinery regarding the unionization of workers at the refinery. NUPENG had previously initiated a strike action before the federal government stepped in to mediate the situation.
Last month, Dangote Refinery secured an interim court order preventing NUPENG from conducting industrial action against the oil company, further escalating tensions between the parties.
The labor dispute has also involved the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), which recently suspended its strike after Dangote Refinery reportedly agreed to reinstate dismissed workers following negotiations with the Nigerian government.
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