Hundreds of students under the aegis of the National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS) yesterday stormed Abuja in a solidarity rally, urging the Federal Government to defend and protect the Dangote Refinery from what they described as the machinations of economic saboteurs.
Led by its National President, Comrade Eshiofune Paul Oghayan, the students carried placards and chanted solidarity songs under the theme: “Protecting National Assets, Securing Youth Futures: NAPS Solidarity with Dangote Refinery for Economic Growth and Stability.”
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Oghayan described the multi-billion-dollar facility as “a national fortress built on private sacrifice,” insisting that it must be shielded from interests bent on frustrating Nigeria’s industrial rebirth. He called on the Federal Government to allocate 100 percent crude oil supply to the refinery to enable full production capacity.
“When we feed this refinery fully, it will flood the market with supply, crash the price of fuel, and stabilise our economy,” he stated.
The NAPS President further urged government ministries and agencies to prioritise locally refined products, arguing that doing so would promote industrial growth, create jobs, and strengthen the country’s economic sovereignty.
“Buy Nigerian, use Nigerian, and defend Nigerian,” Oghayan charged. “The nations that dominate the world became great by protecting what they produce and producing what they protect. Nigeria must do the same.”
The students hailed the Dangote Refinery as not only a beacon of industrial advancement but also a “living campus” for Nigerian youths. Each year, thousands of polytechnic and monotechnic students undergo Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) training at the facility, gaining hands-on exposure to industrial processes.
Describing the refinery as “the refinery of tomorrow built today,” Oghayan noted that the plant refines 650,000 barrels per day and produces Euro-6 standard fuels, with plans to expand capacity to 1.4 million barrels, making it the largest single-train refinery in the world.
However, he cautioned against attempts by vested interests within PENGASSAN, NUPENG, and DAPMAN to derail its operations, accusing them of serving the interests of petroleum importers.
“The same forces that killed the Kaduna, Port Harcourt, and Warri refineries are rising again — not with guns, but with strikes, deceit, and blackmail,” he said. “They are tools in the hands of those who profit when Nigeria bleeds.”
Oghayan reaffirmed that Nigerian youths would resist any plot to undermine the refinery, stressing that “an attack on Dangote Refinery is an attack on Nigeria’s industrial future.”
