Fuel Subsidy: Committees Set Up By Tinubu Failed To Meet For Six Weeks, Lack Seriousness – Nigerian Labour Congress President
Fuel Subsidy: Committees Set Up By Tinubu Failed To Meet For Six Weeks, Lack Seriousness – Nigerian Labour Congress President
The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) has said that the President Bola Tinubu’s government failed to initiate any communication with it for negotiations, as it earlier promised, over the possible ways to cushion the effect of the removal of fuel subsidy.
The NLC President, Joe Ajaero, stated this, adding that the committees set up at the inception by President Bola Tinubu “couldn’t meet for almost six weeks” and cancelled their meetings two times to show there was no seriousness attached to the matter.
NLC had declared a two-day nationwide warning strike from next Tuesday, September 5, 2023 over the economic hardship in the country, worsened by the removal of the petrol subsidy by the government.
The union announced that the industrial action was to demand immediate adjustment of economic policies to make lives easier and more meaningful for the masses.
Ajaero on Friday during an interview said the body was going on a two-day warning strike because the government failed to initiate any communication.
He explained that during their previous engagements with the Federal Government, promises were made to reach out to the union on ways to carry out their negotiations but it (Federal Government) suddenly stopped communicating with the union.
He said, “You’ll recall that after our nationwide protest, there were promises from the National Assembly after admitting one one-on-one with Mr President for him to restructure the team negotiating for the government but between then and now no communication.
“So you can see that negotiation has not even commenced. That is where we are. No communication, nobody talks to us and there seems to be a monologue. We are talking to ourselves and they are talking to themselves.
“We cannot continue this way, three months after the removal of fuel subsidy, on the excruciating effects of this policy on Nigerians. There were committees set up at the inception when we wanted to embark on the strike.
“The committees couldn’t meet for almost six weeks when we started pressing on the issue for us to do a nationwide rally for Nigerians to know that nothing is happening. Before that rally there were attempts by the committee to hold meetings with us but on two various occasions there was no seriousness attached to the meeting.”
Credit: Sahara Reporters
