The organised Labour is set to actualise it’s planned nationwide strike this morning following a deadlock in a two-day meeting between it and the Federal Government and the organised labour ended in a deadlock on Tuesday.
, with the Nigerian Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress leaders vowing to begin a nationwide protest against the removal of fuel subsidy.
This came as oil workers under the aegis of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association began an indefinite strike on Tuesday, citing inhumane treatment by the management of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, an agency of the Federal Government.
The strike and planned protest by the organised labour slated for today is over the fuel subsidy removal by the Federal Government which can shut down the country and paralyse the economy.
The NLC President, Joe Ajaero, insisted that there was no reason to suspend the planned national protests and strike.
Ajaero who spoke a few hours after the last meeting of the Presidential Steering Committee on Palliatives held at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, said “We have no reason to call off the planned protests. If we suspend or call it off, you will know. I can tell you that the mobilisation is very high,” Ajaero said in response to questions from journalists.”
But the Federal Government has reiterated that the planned strike was not only illegal , but was in court over the matter.
The FG had had gone to the National Industrial Court, Abuja, to stop the NLC from embarking on the strike action.
The court had also made an order stopping the NLC from going ahead with the strike pending the hearing and determination of the suit.
The Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Justice, Mrs Beatrice Jedy-Agba, in a letter to the NLC, through their lawyer, Mr Femi Falana, SAN, said parties before the court are supposed to maintain status quo, to respect the pendancy of the matter.
The NLC Secretary-General, Emmanuel Ugboaja, has said after Tuesday’s meeting that the congress would consider the government’s appeal for a peaceful resolution.
But he was countered by the Deputy Vice-President of the NLC, Titus Amba, who said there was no new development following the national broadcast made by the President Bola Tinubu on Monday evening.
