Vice-President Kashim Shettima on Monday declared that Nigeria is greater than the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), as he waded into the rift between the union and the Dangote Refinery.
Speaking at the opening of the Nigerian Economic Summit 2025 in Abuja, Shettima underscored the critical importance of the 650,000-barrel-per-day facility, describing it as a $20 billion national asset that must be supported at all costs to succeed.
“Aliko Dangote, he’s not an individual, he’s an institution, and he’s a leading light in Nigeria’s economic parliament. And how we treat this gentleman will determine how outsiders will judge us. If he had invested $10 billion in Microsoft, in Amazon, or in Google, he probably might be worth $70 to $80 billion by now.
“But he opted to invest in his country, and we owe it to future generations to jealously protect, promote, preserve, and protect the interests of this great Nigeria,” Shettima said.
He urged caution and patriotism in resolving disputes between labour and the private sector, warning against actions that could undermine economic progress.
“I wish to call for caution, retrospection, and a deeper sense of patriotism from both labour and the organised private sector in defining and improving the relationship between labour and industry in the interest of maintaining our steadily improving economic fortunes. It’s not about holding the whole nation to ransom because of a minor labour dispute.
“Nigeria is greater than PENGASSAN. Nigeria is greater than each and every one of us. I’m not coming to you as a partisan,” he added.
