Direct Trucking Company Drivers Association (DTCDA) has dissociated itself from the planned strike by National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG).
Gatekeepers News reports that NUPENG had announced on Friday that its members would stop working and begin searching for alternative jobs from September 8.
The union cited alleged restrictions by the Dangote refinery preventing its compressed natural gas (CNG) tanker drivers from joining labour unions.
In a statement issued by Enoch Kanawa, its national president, after its national executive council (NEC) meeting in Abuja on Saturday, the DTCDA stressed that freedom of association is guaranteed by the 1999 Constitution (as amended), warning that nobody or organisation should force drivers into union membership.
It said, “Any action against the smooth flow of petroleum products in the country is a disservice, flagrant abuse of the power of unionism and should be condemned by all Nigerians.”
DTCDA emphasised that it is an association, not a union. It explained that its primary aim is to promote drivers’ welfare through health coverage, insurance, and post-retirement benefits.
It added, “The DTCDA will not interfere with the operation of any organisation, union or association in Nigeria. Drivers should be allowed the freedom of choice on which union or association best serves their interests.”
The group reaffirmed its support for the federal government’s downstream deregulation policy as well as President Bola Tinubu’s ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda, adding that its members are poised to play an integral role in the distribution of goods and services across the country.
The association further urged the government to prevent any organisation from recruiting members by coercion, insisting that strikes which disrupt petroleum supply chains amount to misuse of union power.
