Members of the Nigeria Labour Congress during the protest at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja
Barely one week after leading a two-day nationwide warning strike, the organised labour on Tuesday threatened to begin an indefinite strike should the Federal Government fail to meet its demands at the end of a 21-day ultimatum which will expire in approximately one week’s time.
The workers union said the proposed strike was necessary following the failure of the Federal Government to provide palliatives to assuage the Nigerians hardships as a result of the fuel subsidy removal.
The Nigeria Labour Congress said the industrial action which may commence any day from next week would lead to an indefinite shutdown of commercial and economic activities across the country.
National Assistant General Secretary of the NLC, Mr Christopher Onyeka, said the FG was wrong to share a bag of rice to a dozen citizens while reportedly giving N100m palliative to each member of the National Assembly.
The union had on September 1 handed down a 21-day ultimatum to the FG over the delay in sharing of palliatives, saying it might be compelled to declare an indefinite labour action if its demands were not met.
“If the government fails to provide the appropriate responses to our demands, we encourage you to maintain your steadfast resolve. The same passion and determination that fuelled this warning strike will be crucial if we find ourselves compelled to embark on an indefinite nationwide strike,’’ the labour body said in a letter to the FG.
To demonstrate its seriousness, the NLC mobilised workers for a two-day warning strike on September 5 and 6, partially grounding social and economic activities in several states with banks, ministries, agencies and departments closed to the public in some states.
The NLC leadership had said the action was in preparation for a total shutdown which would start at the expiration of the ultimatum next week.
Though the FG made a commitment to restructure the framework for engagement with organised Labour on palliatives, the eight-week timeframe set for the conclusion of the process expired in August with no action whatsoever.
The committees were given eight weeks to conclude their assignment and hasten the implementation of the framework in cushioning the effect of petrol subsidy removal on Nigerians but weeks after the timeframe expired, the sub-committees had yet to meet or actualise their mandates.
President Bola Tinubu had since June 19 set up the Presidential Steering Committee and various sub-committees to discuss the framework to be adopted on the palliatives.
The sub-committees had been created to implement FG’s palliative package in areas such as Cash Transfers, Social Investment Programme, Cost of Governance, Energy, and Mass Transit and Housing.
This was a fall-out of the President’s closed-door session with the leadership of the NLC and the TUC during a nationwide protest by the organised labour.
The union leader hinted that the strike would not notify the government before carrying out any action it deems fit.
He said, “We sent the letter to the Federal Government on September 1, 2023, so by September 22, 2023, the 21-day ultimatum will end.
“We have made it clear that the Federal Government has abandoned and absconded from the table for negotiation; that government is no longer negotiating with Nigerians and there is no good faith negotiation that is going on.’’
“President Bola Tinubu promised Nigerians on his own on the television with the President of NLC, Joe Ajaero, that he was going to restructure the committees, but he did not do that, and since then the committees have not met and there has been no negotiation that is on-going. As it is, NLC is not negotiating with the government,” Onyeka said.
The Assistant General Secretary said Nigerians were insulted by the inadequate palliative being given.
He lamented, “Can you see the insult that a ward would share a bag of rice and the government calls that a palliative? It is an insult to Nigerians, whereas the government gave legislators N70bn and each of the legislators gets over N100m in a country where Nigerians are suffering.
“The FG is buying cars and houses of over N100m for each person and Nigerians are keeping quiet as if what is going on is a normal thing. NLC calls Nigerians to join hands together because they cannot do it alone.
‘’When NLC calls for action, people should come out, they should because it is a collective effort to make the government yield to the desires and the interest of Nigerians.”
In order to beat the harsh economic situation, civil servants said they have been devising various survival strategies, including skipping work as well as engaging in farming and trading to augment their incomes.
The Ekiti State NLC Chairman, Kolapo Olatunde, declared that the workers were working under harsh conditions since the Federal Government removed the fuel subsidy.
Olatunde, who said the fuel subsidy removal had led to an increase in the prices of goods and services, justified the need for salary increment.
“If you must fill your car tank now with petrol, you must have over N35,000 and that won’t serve you for two weeks. It means you have to fill your tank twice amounting to N70,000 to take you for four weeks.
‘’If you are a civil servant from whichever level to grade level 14, I am not sure the salary is up to that on a monthly basis. The equation is not balanced, that is the truth. That is why the government should have a listening ear,” Olatunde said.
The NLC leader, who said reducing the working days was not the solution, noted, “The solution is to give workers what is required of them to do their work effectively so that at the end of the day, there will be a positive plough-back.
“If you go to the office to solve problems, someone is now saying don’t come to the office twice or thrice in a week, who solves the problems of those days? It means that the office is not doing anything. It means we are deceiving ourselves. ‘’
“Then, what becomes of the unemployed if you are asking the employed people to stay at home? Definitely, that is a brighter picture that people will no longer be employed,” he concluded.