PRESS RELEASE

The recent mass sack of about 800 workers at the Dangote Refinery is not an isolated incident but part of a long-standing pattern of capitalist exploitation in Nigeria. This act is a brutal attack on the rights of workers and a direct consequence of the Federal Government’s continued surrender to a corrupt capitalist order that prioritises private profit over public welfare.

The struggle between the Dangote Refinery, a privately-owned firm in the oil and gas sector, and the workers who produce its wealth, is only the latest reminder of how the Nigerian masses are held hostage by the reckless policies of the ruling elite. Far from solving the country’s energy crisis, this private giant, protected and promoted by state policy, has become another instrument of oppression, further deepening the hardship of workers and the poor.

We in the Movement for a Socialist Alternative (MSA) maintain clearly that the roots of this crisis lie in the neoliberal and imperialist programmes embraced by successive governments since the return to so-called “democratic” rule. The reckless privatisation and commercialisation of public assets and policies dictated by the IMF, World Bank, and other imperialist agencies have handed over the collective wealth of Nigerians to a handful of private profiteers. These policies have led to job losses, the suppression of trade unions, and the worsening of living conditions for millions.

The tragedy of Nigeria’s non-functional state-owned refineries is not an accident but a deliberate sabotage by the ruling class. Billions of naira were wasted on so-called “turn-around maintenance” that never restored operations. When their sabotage became obvious, the same elites shamelessly proposed selling the refineries, ignoring the resistance of Nigerian workers and labour leaders who rightly denounced this robbery.

This deliberate failure of state ownership paved the way for private monopolies like Dangote’s refinery, emboldening them to trample on workers’ rights with impunity. By sacking 800 workers for exercising their constitutional right to unionise, Dangote refinery has exposed the true character of the capitalist class, hostile to labour, contemptuous of democracy, and committed only to profit maximisation. Such unilateral action cannot be justified and must be condemned by all who stand for justice.

We therefore call on the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to end their docile posture and take up their responsibility as defenders of the Nigerian working class. It is unacceptable for trade unions to remain passive while workers are stripped of their rights and subjected to increasing hardship. The labour movement must rise, mobilise, and actively confront these anti-worker and anti-people policies.

But beyond condemnation, this struggle must point to a clear alternative. The trade unions must lead the campaign for the renationalisation of privatised assets, placing them under democratic control and management by workers and communities, not corrupt politicians or billionaire profiteers. Only in this way can the resources of Nigeria be planned and used to serve the collective welfare rather than the greed of a few.

The sacking of workers at Dangote Refinery is not just about one company; it is a symptom of the wider failure of capitalism in Nigeria. The only true alternative is socialism. A system where production and resources are owned and democratically managed by the working people themselves. The working class must organise, resist, and struggle for this socialist transformation, because as history shows, the capitalist class will never voluntarily respect the rights of workers or ensure their welfare.

Signed

Aj. Dagga Tolar

General Secretary MSA