Africa’s richest businessman, Aliko Dangote, has accused the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) of imposing additional charges of up to ₦50,000 on every truck that loads petrol from his new refinery.
Dangote made the claim while
responding to allegations from NUPENG that his company is preventing the 4,000
CNG-powered trucks it recently launched from joining the union.
“To tell you the truth, for every
truck that loads fuel from here, NUPENG collects about ₦48,000 to ₦50,000.
And if other stakeholders add their own charges, the total rises to between ₦80,000
and ₦84,000. Who ends up paying for this? In the end, it is the ordinary
people who suffer,” he said.
He described such charges as a form
of rent-seeking - profiteering without adding any value - which
undermines efficiency in fuel distribution. Dangote recalled that in the past,
when he imported fuel from abroad, transporters often exploited him, which led
him to acquire his own trucks under the management of his brother.
“Now that we have deployed our CNG
trucks, we will not allow ourselves to be held to ransom again. Without fuel
transportation, nothing can move,” he added.
While acknowledging that workers
have the right to unionize, Dangote stressed that membership should never be
imposed. “Even religion is a matter of choice; you cannot force anyone to
change their faith,” he said.
When contacted, NUPENG President Comrade
Williams Akporeha neither confirmed nor denied the allegations. Instead, he
responded jokingly: “₦50,000 now? I thought it was supposed to be ₦1 per
liter?”
In the past, social media reports
have claimed that the union charges ₦1 on every liter of fuel, but
Akporeha dismissed the claims, saying: “You cannot stop people from expressing
opinions. But anyone making allegations must provide evidence.”
Industry experts have expressed
concern that such charges by a union amount to acting like a tax authority,
warning that this will further increase fuel prices at filling stations, at a
time when Nigerians are already struggling with the rising cost of living.