File: President/Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote

Nigerian billionaire businessman, Aliko Dangote’s defence of his company’s logistics operations and stance on workers’ unionisation has drawn contrasting reactions from Nigerians who called in on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5, FM Ilese Ijebu, on Thursday.

Speaking at the Dangote Refinery in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, on Monday, Dangote stressed that his company is not against union activities but maintained that workers must have the freedom to choose whether or not to join a union.

The industrialist had explained that his decision to build an in-house logistics fleet was aimed at “making things easier for people,” creating over 24,000 jobs with salaries “about three times more than the national minimum wage” and supplying fuel to retailers at cheaper rates.

He also clarified that his conglomerate runs 10,000 vehicles in all — 4,000 trucks and 6,000 tankers, of which 4,000 have been delivered — and said electric vehicles were being considered for the next phase of purchases. On labour issues, he stressed that “joining a union is voluntary and no one should be forced to join any union.”

“Because we believe that you must have engaged in starting a negotiation prior to the time the bubble burst. And everybody is now going haywire. I mean, somebody is trying to speak, somebody is not speaking,” he said.

Dangote faulted the timing of the union’s announcement, which coincided with a national holiday.

“They waited, and so, when the government declared holidays for Friday, the Mouloud holiday, they made their announcement Thursday night. So there was even no room for negotiation,” he explained.

The business magnate insisted his company offers better welfare packages than many in the industry, pointing to provisions such as health insurance, accident cover, housing loans, pensions, and medical care.

Callers reacting to the statement expressed divergent views. Abdulwasiu from Ago-Iwoye warned that Dangote’s operations must still comply with existing laws. “Dangote cannot operate more than what we have in our constitution. If the constitution says the drivers can join union of their own let them join it. I blame the Federal Government, if two out of our four refineries were working we won’t have these issues. It is still the Federal Government I blame,” he said.

Emmanuel from Epe described NUPENG as “fighting like a sinking ship” and backed Dangote’s position. “Filling stations across the federation, Dangote sets a price telling them how much they are expected to spend, hardly will you find filling stations that comply with that narrative. A lot wants to benefit from where they didn’t work. How will you coerce people working in Dangote Refinery to join your union? I support Dangote a hundred percent… In as much as I think I will benefit by buying fuel at lower prices, I will support him,” he said.

Another caller, Adeniyi Kolawole from Ijebu-Ode, also supported Dangote, urging the Federal Government to focus on rehabilitating its refineries rather than “forcing the drivers of the private sector to join them. It is not by force. Let Dangote be,” he stated.

The reactions mirror the broader debate between the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and Africa’s largest conglomerate over unionisation of drivers and distribution of petroleum products, with some Nigerians calling for stronger government regulation and others applauding Dangote’s private-sector approach.

Recall that NUPENG recently accused Dangote’s management of violating a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed earlier this month.

The agreement, reached after the intervention of regulators, the Department of State Services (DSS), and government officials, gave workers two weeks to unionise and barred any victimisation of union members.

NUPENG also alleged that drivers were ordered to remove union stickers from their trucks, a move the union insisted contravened the deal. The union warned of possible strike action if the MoU is not honoured.

Not entirely disrupted by the ongoing drama, Looking ahead, Dangote revealed that the company plans to introduce electric vehicles by January 2026 as part of its transition strategy, alongside the refinery’s expanding production capacity.