The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has reiterated its commitment to embark on a nationwide strike starting Wednesday, following the expiration of its seven-day ultimatum to the federal government.
The labor union conveyed this message on Tuesday evening through a statement signed by its President, Joe Ajaero, reiterating that their demands remain unchanged.
The announcement comes a day after President Bola Tinubu announced a series of intervention measures to cushion the impact of the subsidy removal.
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The Secretary of the NLC, Emma Ugbaja, had previously mentioned that although they appreciated President Tinubu’s intervention measures, they found them to be insufficiently comprehensive.
Ugbaja indicated that the NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) would consult with their members to reach a consensus on the next course of action before the end of Tuesday, in preparation for Wednesday.
“We want to inform all Nigerians that we have just risen from a meeting with the Federal Government where we sought to get them to listen to the demands of the people and workers of Nigeria,” Ajaero said in the union’s statement.
“The outcome of this meeting earlier today has however not changed anything or the course which we have set for ourselves tomorrow as custodians of the interests and desires of Nigerian workers and people.
“Nigerians are advised to ignore the work of fifth columnists who are working hard against the wishes of the people. We urge everyone to gather in our respective states and wherever we may be across the nation to give vent to this collective resolve.
“Once again, the Nationwide Mass Protest will start tomorrow.”
The removal of the fuel subsidy, which was announced by Tinubu in May, triggered a significant rise in the cost of living, prompting the (TUC) and the NLC to issue their first ultimatum to the federal government.
Organized labor is demanding the prompt reversal of all government policies that negatively affect the poor, including the recent increases in petrol prices, school fees, and VAT.
Additionally, the labor unions are calling for the government to undertake the rehabilitation of local refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna and release eight months’ worth of withheld salaries for university lecturers (members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU) and workers.
Furthermore, organized labor insists on the government giving appropriate recognition and support to the Presidential Steering Committee and its subcommittees to address and halt human actions and policies detrimental to the people.
The union said in June that it is unfair for the government to remove fuel subsidies without making adequate provisions to mitigate the impact. That is because the local refineries, especially the publicly owned four, have remained comatose as a result of “the government’s inability to get them operationally turned around.”
The NLC said that between 1993 and 2023 about U$6b was used for Turn Around Maintenance of the Refineries without any results.