Parts of Kaduna were brought to a standstill on Monday as thousands of protesters marched in solidarity with the Dangote Refinery, accusing a powerful oil importation cartel and some elements within the labour movement of trying to sabotage Nigeria’s emerging local refining industry.
The demonstration, themed “National Unity Against Sabotage: Reclaiming Our Petroleum Sector for the People,” called on the Federal Government to take urgent steps to protect the multibillion-dollar Dangote Refinery from what organisers described as “systematic attacks” by vested interests seeking to preserve fuel import monopolies.
Organised under the banner of Partners for National Economic Progress (PANEP), protesters converged on Murtala Mohammed Square before marching through major city roads, including Alkali Road, Ali Akilu Road, Ahmadu Bello Way, and Muhammadu Buhari Way.
They carried placards with inscriptions such as “Protect Local Refining,” “End Fuel Import Cartel,” and “Support Dangote Refinery.”
Addressing the crowd, PANEP leader Igwe Ude-Umanta said the Kaduna protest was part of a nationwide campaign that began in Abuja on October 2.
He described the rallies as a “national liberation effort” to defend Nigeria’s economy from forces determined to keep the country dependent on imported fuel.
READ ALSO: ASUU Begins Nationwide Mobilisation Ahead Of Warning Strike
“This struggle is against the cartel that destroyed our public refineries, killed the textile industry, and now wants to strangle the Dangote Refinery,” Ude-Umanta declared to thunderous applause. “We will not let them succeed. The days of holding Nigeria hostage are over.”
Drawing a parallel with Kaduna’s once-thriving textile sector, he warned that similar acts of sabotage now threaten the petroleum industry.
“Kaduna used to be a textile hub before sabotage destroyed it. Today, the same forces are trying to replicate that in our petroleum sector by frustrating local refining. We will resist them,” he said.
Ude-Umanta accused the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) of complicity, describing its recent industrial action as “economic terrorism.” PANEP urged the government to either halt fuel importation entirely or impose heavy tariffs to protect domestic refining.
“Countries that place tariffs are not stupid; they are protecting their economies,” Ude-Umanta argued. “Importers are scared because local refining will expose their price manipulation and corruption.”
Another PANEP leader, Dahiru Maishanu, accused the union of aiding the import cartel’s agenda.
“What PENGASSAN did was not unionism, it was sabotage,” Maishanu said. “The Federal Government should have arrested their leadership to serve as a deterrent. We cannot allow people to hide under labour unions to commit crimes against our economy.”
The demonstrators urged President Bola Tinubu, who also serves as Minister of Petroleum Resources, to intervene immediately and ensure local refineries, especially Dangote Refinery, receive crude oil at the same rate as foreign refiners.
READ ALSO: We Are Spending ₦4bn Yearly On Electricity – ABU Zaria
“Local refineries must receive crude at equal terms with foreign refineries. That’s key to sustaining the industry and boosting investor confidence,” the group said in a statement read at the rally.
Maishanu further accused the cartel of blocking sales of locally produced Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK) to maintain monopoly profits.
“They are punishing Nigerians to protect their greed,” he said. “They fear local refining because it will expose their fraud and end their control over pricing.”
The protesters praised the Dangote Refinery for its early impact on fuel prices, saying Nigerians were already “breathing fresh air” due to local refining.
They warned that undermining the refinery would damage investor confidence and stall economic recovery.
“If we allow them to kill the Dangote Refinery, no investor will ever risk bringing money into this country again. We must protect this refinery as our own,” Maishanu declared.
PANEP concluded the Kaduna rally with a renewed call on the Federal Government to “crush every enemy of Nigeria’s economic progress” and enforce strong policies to protect domestic refining capacity.
READ ALSO: Five Killed as Dangote Truck Crashes into Tricycle in Ogun
The protest followed ongoing industrial tensions between PENGASSAN and Dangote Refinery management over alleged mass sackings and staff transfers.
The dispute, which led to a strike, was later resolved after marathon negotiations facilitated by the Minister of Labour, Muhammad Dingyadi, and the Office of the National Security Adviser.
The Federal Government had intervened to prevent further disruption, citing the refinery’s strategic importance to national energy security and economic stability.