PENGASSAN Chevron branch elections nullified by Nigerian court

The National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Lagos Division, has nullified the September 16, 2025, elections held by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) for its Chevron branch. Justice Joyce A. O. Damachi ruled that the dissolution of the Chevron Branch Executive Committee (BECOM) and Chapter Executive Committee (CECOM) by PENGASSAN’s Central Working Committee in October 2024 was unconstitutional and void.

The court invalidated the eight-member caretaker committee installed to manage the branch and rejected extensions of its tenure beyond the prescribed three-month period. Additionally, the judgment upheld the validity of the Chevron branch bye-laws from 2017, as reviewed in 2022, declaring the National Secretariat’s unilateral revocation of these laws in July 2025 unconstitutional.

PENGASSAN has been ordered to conduct fresh elections within 30 days of the judgment. The South-West Zonal Director of Labour from the Federal Ministry of Labour is directed to supervise the new elections and submit a compliance report to the court within seven days of the exercise.