Abuja, Aug. 9, 2023: The Organised Labour on Tuesday urged the Federal Government to lead negotiations on the petroleum subsidy removal to cushion its effects on workers and other Nigerians.
The National President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Mr Joe Ajaero, stated this at a meeting between the leadership of the organised labour and the senate leadership led by the President of the Senate Godswill Akpabio.
Ajaero said that the Wage Review Committee was yet to sit two months after the removal of the subsidy.
Ajaero said, “Part of our challenge is the issue of the committee put in place. The committee seems not to be capable. As labour, we have done negotiations with previous administrations.
“At no time had the Chief of Staff to the President, who is very busy, called to negotiate or lead negotiations and that has delayed the issues.
“Even since our protest, another meeting has not reconvened, although the President promised that he will restructure the mechanism of engagement with government for issues to be treated fast.
“We had also agreed on wage award, and up till this moment, the committee on wage award is yet to sit.”
The NLC president lamented the plight of Nigerians as a result of removal without putting certain things on ground to ameliorate the effects on the masses.
He said that while labour leaders were still deliberating on N537 per litre of fuel and court had ruled for status quo to remain, surprisingly the government decided to increase the fuel to N620 per litre.
On the 800 million U.S. dollars loan being sought for by the Federal Government, the NLC president urged the government not to use the same template of disbursement by the previous government.
“Nothing is yet to happen on the issue of 800million projected to be borrowed, we have not perfected the list of the people who will benefit from it.
“We should not follow the record that was used in 2019 because we have our doubts on that record and no indices have been put forward to dictate those that are termed poor,” he said.
Responding, Akpabio thanked the organised labour for their patience.
He told them that although the president had saved N1 trillion as a result of the removal, adding that he inherited a broke country with debt over N30 trillion.
“But be rest assured that effect of fuel subsidy removal being felt by workers and in fact Nigerians would be ameliorated very soon by the federal government,” he said.
