By Sandra Ugwu 

The House of Representatives on Tuesday engaged in a heated debate over a motion seeking to protect the $20 billion Dangote Refinery and other key private investments from disruptive labour union activities.

The motion, sponsored by Alhassan Doguwa (APC–Kano) and Abdulsamad Dasuki (PDP–Sokoto), followed the recent industrial dispute between the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the Dangote Refinery, which led to a temporary shutdown of operations and fuel scarcity across the country.

Doguwa, in his presentation, described the refinery as a strategic national asset vital to Nigeria’s energy security and economic stability. He warned that persistent union disruptions could discourage investors and damage confidence in the economy.

According to him, the refinery operates under the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) framework, which exempts it from standard labour laws. Citing Section 5 of the NEPZA Act, Doguwa argued that employment within Free Trade Zones is regulated by the Authority and not by conventional labour enactments.

Co-sponsor Dasuki added that Section 18(5) of the NEPZA Act prohibits strikes or lockouts within Free Zones for ten years after the commencement of operations. “It’s disheartening that a project of such magnitude, built by a Nigerian, is being undermined by actions contrary to the law,” he said, warning that failure to protect strategic investments could have dire economic consequences.

While Minority Leader Kingsley Chinda supported the motion in principle, he urged caution and dialogue. In the same vein, Hon. Ahmed Jaha proposed that the House leadership mediate between PENGASSAN and the Dangote Group instead of launching a formal probe. The suggestion received overwhelming support, and the House resolved to pursue an amicable settlement through dialogue.

Meanwhile, in a separate session, the House resolved to investigate the utilisation of over $4.6 billion in grants received by Nigeria from the Global Fund and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) between 2021 and 2025 for combating HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria.

The resolution followed a motion by Hon. Philip Agbese, who expressed concern over Nigeria’s continued high disease burden despite massive foreign health interventions. He noted that Nigeria ranks first in Africa for tuberculosis and bears over 26 percent of the global malaria burden, warning that the country risks missing the 2030 UN target for eradicating the diseases if accountability lapses persist.

The House consequently mandated its Committee on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria Control to investigate the management and utilisation of the grants and report back within four weeks.

- AnchorNews