Aliko Dangote, president of Dangote Group, has dismissed claims that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery is displacing workers, insisting instead that the company is creating thousands of new jobs.

Speaking at a press briefing on Monday, the billionaire said the deployment of 4,000 compressed natural gas (CNG) trucks would generate at least 24,000 direct and indirect jobs nationwide.

“We are not taking jobs away; we are creating more opportunities. The CNG trucks will not be operated by robots,” Dangote said.

He explained that the refinery’s drivers are paid salaries three times higher than the national minimum wage. In addition, employees receive life insurance, health insurance that covers their spouses and up to four children, and a guaranteed lifelong pension.

According to him, the recruitment drive extends beyond drivers to include mechanics, fleet managers, and other technical professionals who will support the new fleet.

The refinery had announced the acquisition of the 4,000 CNG trucks on June 15, saying the move would strengthen its nationwide fuel distribution. By June 29, the company projected that the distribution scheme could save Nigeria over ₦1.7 trillion annually.

However, three months later, the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) threatened a nationwide strike, accusing Dangote Refinery of anti-union practices. Though the union suspended a two-day strike on September 9, it warned of possible further action.

‘Refinery not opposed to unions’

Sayyu Dantata, founder of MRS Oil Nigeria Plc, stressed that Dangote Refinery was open to working with NUPENG and other labour organisations.

“We are not against unions. We want to live and work alongside them. There’s no problem with that,” he said.

He noted that the refinery only became aware of the union’s grievances through media reports, despite his longstanding ties with industry unions.

“By law, unions are expected to give notice and a grace period before action. Even so, we went into dialogue. Unionism is not by force. People have the right to decide whether or not to belong,” Dantata said.

He added that the refinery welcomes all business partners without discrimination, whether they are union members or not.

“Our focus is the common man. Most of our drivers prefer independence because we ensure they earn a decent wage,” he said.

According to him, the new working conditions have elevated the social status of truck drivers in Nigeria. “For the first time, a driver can proudly tell his children that he is a truck driver and still provide them with food, shelter, and education,” Dantata said.

The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) have given the Federal Government a seven-day ultimatum to address long-standing grievances affecting non-academic staff across universities.

In a joint letter dated September 12, 2025, the unions criticised what they described as the “unfair” sharing of earned allowances, the non-payment of outstanding entitlements, and delays in resolving other critical labour matters.

The document, signed by SSANU President Muhammed Ibrahim and NASU General Secretary Peters Adeyemi, reminded Education Minister Tunji Alausa of an earlier letter from their Joint Action Committee (JAC) on June 18, 2025. That letter, they said, had outlined pressing issues requiring government intervention.

Following the correspondence, the minister convened a meeting with NASU and SSANU leaders on July 4, 2025, to discuss the concerns raised.

According to the unions, the outstanding matters include: the “unjust disbursement” of ₦50 billion in earned allowances, non-payment of withheld salaries, failure to implement a 25/35 per cent salary increment, and the delayed renegotiation of the 2009 FGN–NASU/SSANU agreements.

They warned that if the government failed to act within the seven-day window starting Monday, September 15, 2025, their members would embark on a series of lawful industrial actions, including strikes.

The statement further noted that during the July 4 meeting, it was agreed that a Tripartite Committee—comprising the Federal Ministry of Education, the National Universities Commission, and representatives of the two unions—would be set up to address the imbalance in the ₦50 billion allowances. The unions argued that while university staff received a share, workers in Inter-University Centres were completely excluded.

On the matter of two months’ withheld salaries, the unions said there was no resolution at the July meeting. However, the minister reportedly pledged to fast-track the payment of arrears tied to the 25/35 per cent salary increment owed to members.

They added that a reminder letter was sent to the minister on August 18, 2025, due to what they described as his office’s silence—or deliberate refusal—to act on the issues.

The statement also faulted the government for dragging its feet on the renegotiation of the 2009 agreements. The committee chaired by Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, inaugurated on October 15, 2024, only met with the JAC once—on December 10, 2024. Since then, the unions claimed, the government team has stopped engaging them, even though it has reportedly concluded renegotiations with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

The unions recalled that they raised this concern during the July 4 meeting, where the minister promised to intervene. However, no progress has been recorded since then.

“Despite our repeated attempts to draw attention to the plight of our members in universities and Inter-University Centres, the government has failed to act,” the unions said.

They stressed that, given the continued inaction, they had no choice but to issue a final seven-day notice beginning September 15, 2025. Failure to meet their demands, they warned, would result in nationwide strikes and other industrial actions.

Two Nigerian nationals who allegedly broke out of prison in Nepal during recent anti-government demonstrations have been captured by India’s paramilitary force, the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).

According to a Monday report by the Press Trust of India, the duo was apprehended on Saturday in Jainagar, Bihar State, as they attempted to cross the border back into Nepal.

The Nigerians were reported to be among dozens of detainees—both locals and foreigners—who escaped correctional facilities in Nepal amid violent protests that shook the Himalayan country in recent weeks.

Quoting a security source, the news agency said: “These individuals were intercepted at the border in the past three to four days after escaping from different jails during the massive anti-government demonstrations in Nepal.”

The SSB disclosed that more than 79 fugitives, including foreign nationals, have so far been arrested in various Indian states adjoining Nepal.

Authorities explained that the large-scale manhunt became necessary because the 1,751-kilometre-long India-Nepal border, spread across 20 districts in five states, is largely open and without fencing.

The arrest of the Nigerians has once again spotlighted the recurring involvement of some Nigerian nationals in cross-border crimes across Asia, a trend that has increasingly worried law enforcement agencies.

Earlier reports had it that police in Kozhikode City, India, arrested eight Nigerians accused of drug trafficking.

The Hindu newspaper noted that the suspects allegedly held “key roles” in a wider drug cartel said to operate across multiple Indian states.

In collaboration with a state-level task force, the Kozhikode police also discovered a synthetic drug laboratory in Gurugram, Haryana, with assistance from police units in Delhi and Haryana.