Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
Former Senate leader, Ali Ndume, has warned oil marketers against persistent attacks on the Dangote Refinery, saying that the nation now operates a deregulated oil sector where every operator is free to compete on equal terms.
His intervention comes amid lingering tussle between the refinery on one hand, and the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), as well as the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), on the other hand.
Recall that NUPENG had recently embarked on industrial action which led to the shutdown of depots, accusing the refinery of refusing to allow its truck drivers to join the union in line with the Trade Union Act.
DAPPMAN, the umbrella body of fuel importers, separately accused the refinery of attempting to suppress competition by allegedly offering its products to international traders at cheaper rates than those given to local marketers.
Although the Department of State Services (DSS) has since stepped in to resolve the refinery’s dispute with junior oil workers, Ndume, in a statement yesterday, expressed worry over what he called “a poisonous media narrative to paint Dangote in bad light in the eyes of Nigerians and the international community.”
The lawmaker who represented Borno South senatorial district, recalled that successive administrations had deliberately encouraged private participation in the refining sector but decried that those who secured licenses at the time only took advantage of the government’s incentives without building refineries.
“Before Dangote took the risk to build his refinery, previous administrations had granted licenses to many Nigerians. What did they do with it? Some of them only cashed in on the incentives of crude oil allocation.
“If my memory serves me right, licenses were granted to 12 private operators as far back as 2002 to build refineries and reduce dependence on imported fuel. The second round of licenses was done in 2007 by the then Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) after revoking the first batch and granting nine new licenses to private investors.
“Those parading themselves as fuel importers today didn’t seize the initiative to come together to build refineries. Again, during the Muhammadu Buhari administration, licenses were granted to private investors to build modular refineries. How many of them actually scratched the surface? But they are ganging up to falsely accuse Dangote of monopolising the market,” he said.
The former senator condemned what he described as growing hostility against the refinery, insisting that the Federal Government, in line with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), has created an enabling climate for deregulation and competition.
“It is wrong to talk about monopoly in a deregulated industry. There are no deliberate bottlenecks against anyone and no player has been accorded special concession to the detriment of others,” Ndume said.
He maintained that the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) should take more than a passing interest in the feud among industry players to forestall actions that could disrupt petroleum products distribution.
“I urge NUPENG, PENGASSAN and all concerned stakeholders to engage in constructive dialogue with Dangote rather than inciting division and undue sensationalism in the media.
“Our common goal should be to balance labour rights with the imperatives of national development and not put ordinary citizens at the receiving end of a needless power tussle,” Senator Ndume said.