Nigeria’s Organised Labour, led by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) today began a two-day warning strike after shunning a meeting with the Federal Government over increasing hardship and suffering across the country caused by the removal of fuel subsidy.
The NLC has vowed to ground the economy.
Already, the strike garnered widespread support from key stakeholders, including the banking sector, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), and workers’ unions, as they unite to address the growing economic crisis in the country.
The National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions Employees, the umbrella organisation representing workers in the banking and insurance industry, on Monday vowed to take part in the strike, effectively shutting down financial activities across Nigeria.
A statement signed by the General Secretary of NUBIFIE, Mr Mohammed Sheikh, underscored the importance of their participation in the two-day warning strike by the NLC, citing the need to draw the government’s attention to the dire economic situation faced by Nigerians.
The leadership of NUBIFIE has issued a notice that all banks will be shut down on Tuesday, 5 and Wednesday, 6 September 2023, in line with the NLC two-day strike directive.
“The directives are imperative to get the needed attention of the government and to warn it against interfering in the internal affairs of unions instead of addressing the punishing economic circumstances we find ourselves in,” the statement emphasised.
Joining the chorus of concern, the United Action Front of Civil Society has thrown its full support behind the NLC’s two-day warning strike.
In a statement signed by the Head of the National Coordinating Centre for the United Action Front of Civil Society, Wale Okunniyi, the organisation expressed outrage over the hardship inflicted on Nigerians by the government’s decision to remove fuel subsidies and subsequently raise the price of premium motor spirit.
The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria has backed the Nigerian Labour Congress to embark on the two-day warning strike.
This was contained in a letter on Monday titled, ‘Compliance to the Nigerian Labour Congress directive on a nationwide two-day warning strike’, signed by the Head of Media, MWUN, John Ikemefuna.
Meanwhile, the NLC’s call for a nationwide strike has clearly resonated with many Nigerians grappling with economic hardships.
The widespread support from unions, civil society, and the public underscores the mounting frustration with government policies perceived as worsening the plight of ordinary citizens.
In the coming days, all eyes will be on how this unfolding drama of protest and appeal unfolds on the streets and within the corridors of power, shaping the nation’s response to its ongoing economic turmoil.
This came as the Minister of Labour and Employment, Simon Lalong, on Monday warned that the strike will worsen the plights of ordinary Nigerians and urged NLC to shelve the action.
The NLC had on Friday, given notice of a two-day warning strike to protest the excruciating mass suffering and impoverishment experienced around the country, threatening a total and indefinite shutdown of the economy within 14 working days or 21 days after the warning strike, if government did not take steps to address the hardship experienced across the country.
While briefing on Friday after its NEC’s meeting, NLC President, Joe Ajaero, said: “NEC in session of NLC resolved to embark on a total and indefinite shutdown of the nation within 14 working days or 21 days from today until steps are taken by the government to address the excruciating mass suffering and the impoverishment experienced around the country.”
Sources confirmed that the strike is going ahead despite the aborted scheduled meeting with Minister of Labour and Employment, Simon Lalong, as he held a media briefing where he allegedly castigated labour leaders ahead of the meeting, forcing NLC leaders to shun the meeting that would have been held at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Federal Secretariat.
The Minister was said to have threatened the NLC leaders at his briefing, foreclosing any chance that NLC would honour the meeting.
One of the visibly angry NLC leaders told Vanguard that the Minister’s alleged outburst a few hours before the scheduled meeting put the final nail to NLC’s resolve to proceed with the strike as resolved by members of its National Executive Council, NEC, last Friday.
His words: “We were scheduled to meet the Minister of Labour and Employment later today (yesterday), precisely by 3 pm but a few hours to the meeting, the minister called a media briefing where he castigated us and threatened us among other uncomplimentary words.
“Not that the meeting would have stopped the strike, but we intended to attend the meeting in the spirit of social dialogue. But as you are aware, the Minister of Labour, before the scheduled meeting, held a media briefing castigating and threatening us.
‘’You do not expect us to attend a meeting when we had been warned of a possible arrest. In fact, we thank the Minister for putting us on notice of their plan. So, the right thing to do is to keep away from such meetings and avoid any possible arrest.
“What the Minister had done was nothing short of industrial dictatorship and naked blackmail. The Federal Government had already taken decision on the proposed meeting, the minister was kind enough to hold a briefing ahead of the meeting to disclose part of the government’s decision.
‘’Well, like I said earlier, the strike goes ahead as planned. After Wednesday, we will determine what next steps to follow. The NEC’s communiqué was loud enough. We cannot continue as if we are living in a different country from our political leaders and their cronies.
‘’You cannot continue to beat us and say we should not cry. Everywhere you go in every part of the country; people are complaining of hardship and suffering without concrete efforts by government to lessen our pains. Instead, the government is unleashing more policies to send us to untimely death.”
Minister waits for NLC delegation
Expectedly, the Federal Government said it waited for the NLC to attend a negotiation meeting at the Ministry of Labour and Employment headquarters, but the Congress refused to attend.
Labour and Employment Minister, Lalong disclosed this at the meeting attended by the delegation of the Trade Union Congress, TUC of Nigeria.
The Minister also said that the Ministry was yet to receive any formal communication from the NLC on the proposed two-day warning strike.
Said Lalong: “In the last two or three days, while we were receiving our briefing from the ministry to set the ball rolling, we were confronted few days ago with the strike notice.
“Because of the urgency of that strike notice, we quickly summoned a meeting today (yesterday) and we conveyed a notice of this meeting to the NLC and I must apologize too that your own meeting came this morning and all of you attended because in the course of some of the issues that were raise,d we needed to sort them out and we believe that it was within our capacity to see if we can sort out some of these problems, even today.
“Because we raised our own point in our press conference earlier today that we just came on board, receiving our briefing to set the ball rolling but suddenly we are confronted with strike notice so we suspended the briefing to carry on with this headlong because some of the issues are issues that we are already getting briefing from our department.
“So we thought that by commencing this briefing we will have a headway in solving some of the problems . So just yesterday we also got information that the TUC also met but when we got the information, we said if that’s the case we will combine the TUC and the NLC so that we see all the issues and if possible treat those issues holistically.
“So that’s the purpose for this emergency meeting which we convened and I fixed the time for 3 pm so we kept on waiting for the NLC from three o’clock till this time we have not received any information about their attending the meeting but I am happy that the TUC is here.
“So, the purpose of this meeting like I said is to quickly address those issues that were raised and see the possibility of averting this strike action that is scheduled to be embarked upon by tomorrow.
“Although, I am sure up to today, we have not received any communication of any strike from the NLC.”
Strike will worsen plight of Nigerians, says Lalong
Earlier, the Federal Government had appealed to NLC to call off the planned strike, saying it would worsen the plights of Nigerians
Briefing journalists, Lalong pleaded with NLC leadership to allow all stakeholders to work towards amicable resolution of the contending issues on ground.
The Labour Minister said: “ I would like to reiterate my appeal to the leadership of the NLC to suspend their planned 2-day warning strike, and subsequent future actions, and to allow us to work together to amicably resolve these issues rather than embark on actions that would further worsen the conditions of the citizens of Nigeria.”
Acknowledging workers constraints, Lalong said the President stated several times that he is not unaware that the implementations of the vital but difficult policies come along with a measure of hardship for all of us citizens of this country.
According to him, “While some of these policies are being planned and fine-tuned, others are being rolled out as palliative measures to bring temporary relief to Nigerians. In the long run, the government of President Tinubu will put in place measures that will empower the people as well as create jobs and prosperity.
“As we continue in this direction, therefore, we must ensure that there is a robust line of communication with Nigerians and in particular the organised labour to forestall a breakdown of industrial peace which would no doubt reverse some of the gains already made.
“In this context, it has become pertinent to appeal to the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), to suspend its intended 2-days warning strike, as such action would be detrimental to the gains already being recorded on our course to securing a greater future for Nigerian workers and citizens at large.
“Consequently, I use this opportunity to reassure Nigerian workers that this government would never take them for granted nor fail to appreciate their support and understanding. We shall continue to pursue policies aimed at massive employment generation in all sectors of the economy as well as look into immediate challenges that have emerged out of the policies of government.”
With additional reports from Vanguard, PUNCH
