Hussaini Nuhu

Amazing How Nigerians Become Heroes in Secret and Villains in Public Dear @DangoteGroup, Your 4-page publication branding Nigerian engineers and PENGASSAN as “lawless” and “terrorists” reads less like a balanced account and more like an attempt to shape perception. But perhaps it is more useful to view this not as a battle between DPRP and PENGASSAN, but as a reminder of something simpler, that unions exist to protect workers, especially when they feel abandoned. If these young engineers had been treated with the same dignity often extended to expatriates, maybe none of this drama would have surfaced. Consider the irony. On the one hand, official statements accuse Nigerians of sabotage. On the other hand, HR quietly recalls previously disqualified applicants for medicals and onboarding. If all was truly under control, why scramble for the very people already deemed unfit? Maybe because the truth is that the refinery cannot run without these Nigerians, and by law, it shouldn't. Just hours ago, a LinkedIn post by an Indian recruiter openly advertised refinery roles—Panel Operators, Shift In-Charge, CDU, HGU, RFCC, and more. Shortly after, another post appeared by Mukesh Sharma, listed as a Quality Control Officer at Dangote Refinery, sharing similar openings. If Nigerians were truly saboteurs and already replaced, why the sudden global search for operators? It suggests that refineries run not on glossy statements, but on capable hands, capable Boys and girls whom were praised to be the best by your CEO some days ago, and today were just shown the door. We must remember the sacrifices of those dismissed. These were the people who pre-commissioned, commissioned, started up, and stabilized the plant. They worked six days on and one day off, sometimes stretching into 24-hour shifts during shutdowns. They purchased PPEs with their own money, endured the loss of lunch and rest facilities, and carried on even when they had no health insurance nor life insurances, all to make sure the refinery came alive. And in return, they were branded as saboteurs. Heroes in reality, villains in a press release kind of thing? Even Annex Two of your own publication betrays the narrative. PENGASSAN’s statement that the Port Harcourt refinery lacked a reformer unit for direct PMS production was not mischief, it was a technical fact. The very quotes you highlighted confirmed it. Yet somehow, fact was recast as “terror tactics.” Nigerians are not blind to the contradiction; when workers state facts, it is branded mischief, but when management makes sweeping changes, it is called “in the interest of the refinery.” The irony deepens. In your official publications, Nigerian engineers are painted as the problem. Yet in HR inboxes they suddenly become the solution. Below is the invitation a number of these Nigerians received just when this whole drama started. One day accused of sabotage, the next day, fresh ones quietly recalled to fill critical roles. Perhaps the refinery is learning, the hard way, that concrete and steel don’t refine fuel. People do. And it was these same Nigerian engineers that turned blueprints into reality. Protecting investment should never mean discarding those who give it life. Credibility will come not from lengthy publications but from transparency; audited workforce composition, ratios of Nigerians to foreigners, HSE compliance records, welfare audits. Without these, it becomes difficult to justify why engineers who sacrificed so much were branded as “terrorists.” Thank you.