Our reporter/ Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, has issued a nationwide strike notice to seek the reversal of fuel pump price hike and other policies by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government.
In a seven-day ultimatum, the NLC asked the Tinubu administration to reverse “all anti-people” policies including the hike in the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) known as petrol.
According to a Communique at the end of its Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting held on Tuesday, the labour union threatened to embark on a total and indefinite strike from Wednesday, August 2, 2023 should the Federal Government fail to do the needful.
The Communique was co-signed by NLC President, Joe Ajaero; and the union’s General Secretary, Emmanuel Ugboaja.
The NLC said the Federal Government has shown enormous disdain and contempt for Nigerian people and workers and have declared a war of attrition on Nigerian workers and masses.
The labour union said since the President’s “subsidy is gone forever” speech on inauguration day on May 29, 2023, “the peace of mind of Nigerians has gone; decent living gone increasing despair of unimaginable dimensions”.
It said the “government has continued to treat Nigerians as Slaves and a conquered people which it treats with impunity without any concern on the consequences”.
“That the Federal Government has continued in an unholy mission of robbing the poor to pay the rich in Nigeria as typified by its continued frustration of the activation of the agreed alternatives to Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and new hike in prices of PMS to N617 per litre,” the communique partly read.
“That the NNPCL has turned itself into the forces of demand and supply and fixes the price of Petroleum products while mouthing deregulation.
“That Government’s conduct suggests it does not intend to commit itself to the MoU it signed with NLC and TUC.
The NLC thereafter demanded “the immediate reversal of all anti-poor policies of the federal government including the recent hike in PMS price, Increase in Public School fees, the release of the eight months withheld Salary of University lecturers and Workers and increase in VAT”.
Others include the immediate inauguration of the Presidential Steering Committee as agreed in the earlier consequential dialogues.
NLC spokesperson, Mr. Ben Upah had earlier on Wednesday confirmed
that the nationwide strike would commence on 2nd August, 2023.
“Yes, the nationwide strike will commence on 2 August 2023. We will soon issue a communique to that effect”, he said.
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