Tinubu Meets Labour Leaders, Appeals For Suspension Of Strike

Tinubu Meets Labour Leaders, Appeals For Suspension Of Strike

Adeboye   19:39:00   No comments:

The National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has called on the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress to call off the ongoing strike over the increase in fuel pump price from N86 and N86.50k to N145.

The former Lagos State Governor pleaded with the President of the NLC, Ayuba Wabba, and other leaders of the congress to return to the negotiation table with the Federal Government to resolve the current industrial dispute.

Tinubu who was in company with the Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola, Senators Marafa, Humkunyi Suleiman and others said his mission to the Labour House was to let peace reign.

He said, “I have come to appeal to you to suspend the action you have embarked upon and return to the negotiating table.”

Labour leaders present at the meeting were Wabba, the Deputy Presidents of the Congress, Peters Adeyemi, Nojeem Yarsin, the Chairman of the Labour and Civil Society Coalition, Prof. Dipo Fashina, a former Vice President of the congress, Isah Aremu and others.

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Strike: Police Beat, Teargas, Arrest Labour Leaders

Strike: Police Beat, Teargas, Arrest Labour Leaders

Adeboye   04:24:00   No comments:

The police yesterday descended on labour leaders in Ebonyi State for organising rally to protest the hike in the pump price of petrol from N86 to N145 per litre. Chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ikechukwu Nwafor, was beaten and injured by the police in Abakaliki during a peaceful rally in support of the on-going strike declared by a faction of the NLC. Nwafor, who was teargassed by the police, sustained leg and head injuries.

He was bundled into a police Hilux van and whisked to police headquarters in Abakaliki, the state capital. Other labour leaders also sustained varying degrees of injuries during the rally. The labour leaders had gathered at the NLC secretariat located along Ugwuachara Road, Abakaliki and commenced the rally.

On getting to Bishop Mcgretrick Pastoral Centre along old Enugu Road, the labour leaders were intercepted by a team of policemen, who were in three Hilux vans and who immediately fired teargas on them, leading to pandemonium in the metropolis as people scampered for safety. This was as some policemen threw teargas while others descended on the labour leaders.

The labour leaders were later arrested and taken to the police headquarters, where they were detained. Addressing reporters, Nwafor, who was in police custody alongside other labour leaders, said: “We were on a peaceful rally over the fuel price increase and electricity tariff when we were attacked and it is a protest that is on-going all over the country and we notified the police of the protest.

“We gave them a letter on the protest. After I called the Commissioner of Police and she didn’t pick the call, we made sure that the letter was delivered to the commissioner and then commenced the rally. “We were marching peacefully when policemen came and attacked us. They tear-gassed and beat me up.

Five policemen bundled me and threw me into their Hilux van and that was why I broke my hands and legs like this. “As you can see, I can’t walk, I’m being assisted to walk and yet, the police refused to allow me to go so that I can go for treatment,” he said. In a reaction, the state Commissioner of Police, Ibekwe Abdallah, noted that the labour leaders were organising illegal meeting that could spark off violence in the state when police got to know about it and dispersed them. Abdallah added that she received a letter from the labour leaders over their planned protest and that the letter was brought to her office at the time the labour leaders were on the rally.

Workers in the state were seen at their duty posts when our correspondent visited different government offices in the state. The leadership of the NLC has demanded for the release of the labour leaders. While demanding for the immediate release of the arrested labour members, the Congress said it would not allow any distraction to take it off the struggle path. NLC General Secretary, Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson, in Abuja, warned that overzealous security personnel should not escalate the protest, which has been peaceful. The Labour body said that the struggle continued, no matter government’s intimidation.

“We urge overzealous police personnel who arrested and detained some of our members in Ebonyi State to unconditionally release them immediately. “We would use this opportunity to sound a note of warning to all overzealous security personnel. “This has been a peaceful protest and we intend to keep it so.

They should do nothing reckless to escalate it,” Eson said. The protest, which took off at the popular Berger Roundabout, Abuja moved through Area I and Central Business District with improved participation.

Meanwhile, there are indications that the NLC may call off its two-day old industrial action anytime from today. This is even as the NLC yesterday agreed to resume negotiation with the Federal Government on the strike action over deregulation of the downstream sector of the oil industry. The agreement was reached at a mediatory meeting with Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, last night in Abuja, according to a statement by his media adviser, Turaki Hassan.

Dogara and the NLC leaders, led by the national president, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, met behind closed doors for one hour where the agreement was reached. During the meeting, the speaker made passionate appeal to the labour leaders to consider national interest over and above all other interests even as they deliberate to take decision on the current strike action. The speaker urged the NLC to, in the interest of the nation, consider suspending or calling off the strike action while negotiations continue.

Responding, Wabba thanked the speaker for his interest in resolving the crisis through mediation and assured that they will report the discussions to the larger body of their members.

Consequently, the NLC resolved to communicate the new development to the larger body comprising of all its affiliate unions because “we have absolute confidence in the leadership of the speaker.” Speaking after an earlier meeting with the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, Wabba said that Labour was open to negotiation with the Federal Government on the dispute. The NLC President, however, insisted that the strike embarked upon by the union would continue.

Wabba, who is leading a faction of the NLC, also clarified that the union had never staged a walk out on the Federal Government delegation, contrary to media reports.

However, the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Joe Ajaero-led NLC faction which controls the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), National Union of Electricity Employees and others refused to participate in the strike, calling for support for government.

Saraki said that the NLC had shown commitment for dialogue, assuring that the National Assembly would play its role in resolving the crisis.

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Strike: FG, Labour Leaders In Marathon Meeting

Strike: FG, Labour Leaders In Marathon Meeting

Adeboye   16:22:00   No comments:

Determined to avert tomorrow’s planned showdown by the Organised Labour to protest the increase in pump price of premium motor spirit (PMS) also known as petrol from N86 to N145 per litre, representatives of the Federal Government and leaders of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and unions in the oil and gas sector were locked in a closed-door meeting yesterday.

The meeting was at the instance of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Engr. Babachir Lawal.

The meeting, which was scheduled to kick off at 3:30p.m., did not start until 7p.m. even as there was a mild drama when the Ayuba Wabba-led faction of NLC insisted that they would not attend the meeting if Joe Ajaero and his team were allowed in. After series of arguments, Ajaero and his team comprising of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) were persuaded to stay out of the meeting.

The meeting was presided over by the SGF. In attendance on the Federal Government’s team were the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu; Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma; Minister of Solid Minerals development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed and Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige. Others are Governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole; Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly, Senator Ita Enang and other government officials.

The Labour team was led by the NLC President, Wabba, who was joined by the General Secretary of the NLC, Dr. Peter Ozo- Eson, President of Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), Olabode Johnson; President of the TUC, Bobboi Bala Kiagama, and Acting General Secretary of the TUC, Simeso Amachree, among others.

Oshiomhole had earlier met with Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, possibly to harmonise Federal Government’s position before they went for the closed-door meeting at the SGF office. NUPENG and PENGASSAN had earlier endorsed the deregulation policy of the Federal Gov- ernment.

Addressing the meeting before going into a closeddoor session, the SGF said the decision to deregulate the petroleum sector was taken in the best interest of Nigerians, adding that President Muhammadu Buhari empathizes with Nigerians over the short term consequences of the decision. He said to deliver on his campaign promises, the government realised that painful decisions had to be taken, saying, “This could be one of such painful decisions.”

Lawal said due to the unavailability of foreign exchange for marketers to import the product, the NNPC had to bear the burden of importation, pointing out that in doing so, it had to overshoot its crude allocation, therefore reducing crude import and subsequent reduction of the available resources to the federation account.

He said with the decision to deregulate, the government believed that there will be adequate supply of products which will eventually force down prices, boost investment in the sector and provide employment opportunities for Nigerians.

He appealed to Nigerians and the organised labour to support the government decision and put patriotism ahead of personal or group interest. Speaking at the opening of the meeting, Kaigama said the organised labour lowered the intensity of its agitation against the government to sympathise with the various challenges the current administration inherited from the immediate past administration. He, however, said that the government should also sympathise with Nigerians who are suffering, noting that the Labour representatives came to the meeting with open minds. Kaigama noted that government should also muster courage to put in place palliatives to cushion effects of its policies on Nigerians.

Reacting to the Labour leaders’ presentation, Oshiomhole lamented that the Federal Government is currently swimming in financial mess it inherited from the past administration, but noted that Buhari is more concerned and worried about how policies of his administration are affecting Nigerians. He argued that the government was left with no option about the deregulation than to take the decision. “We have a president who is very concerned about the people.

The facts on ground are clear; to do nothing now will mean that we will find ourselves consumed by the problem. “I want my comrades to appreciate that this is not a decision that was easy to arrive at. How long do we sustain a system where people spend four hours to get PMS at the filling stations? “If the choice is between what is nice, what is painful and painless, President Buhari would definitely go for the painless,” he said. He cautioned the labour leaders against industrial action.

“We have to reflect on whether we should allow subsidy regime where a few people pocket trillions of naira. NLC and TUC should reflect on all these. We need open mind in occasion like this. I appreciate the tension workers are passing through now.

Many workers are not even getting the N18,000 minimum wage as and when due,” he said. The meeting afterward went into closed session. However, factional leader of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, said the decision reached between the government and Wabba faction was not bidding on his group. His words: “Government invited us as a faction. NUPENG and electricity workers’ union belong to my faction. “But the other faction said they preferred a separate meeting.

What that means is that we are going to have separate positions. So, the Wednesday they had fixed for action cannot be a date for us because they are trying to appropriate the power to call for action and to challenge issues on petroleum products.

They don’t have that power. “We will wait for our group to meet. But definitely, it appears that by ideology, we can no longer meet. We thought we could manage this for the interest of Nigerians. But from the look of things, it appears we have to go our different ways.”

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Labour Unites Against Buhari, Vows To Shut Down Nigeria

Labour Unites Against Buhari, Vows To Shut Down Nigeria

Adeboye   03:05:00   No comments:

The two factions of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and members of Civil Societies, yesterday, rose from their respective emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meetings, vowing to call out Nigerians on a nationwide strike on Wednesday if the Federal Government fails to retrace its steps on the contentious N145 new pump price of petrol recently announced by the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu.

The announcement by the junior minister ‘deregulating’ the downstream sector of the Nigerian oil and gas industry has also ignited another round of free fall of the naira in the foreign exchange market.

A development the president of Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, said was caused by the permission the minister granted the fuel importers to source their foreign exchange from secondary sources.

According to him, the market had been stable all this while due to drastic reduction in imports, “but the announcement on Wednesday has changed the whole thing.” He fears that the exchange rate will rise to N400 a dollar this week if the condition persists. On Thursday, the naira lost N7 to the dollar as exchange rate rose sharply to N334 per dollar from N320 per dollar.

This persisted on Friday with the parallel market exchange rate rising to N370 per dollar which translated to N50 depreciation of the naira in two days. Kachikwu had said that the lingering fuel scarcity in the country was caused by the forex crisis in the country since the collapse of the prices of crude in the international market. A development that forced the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to peg the official exchange rate of the naira against the US Dollar at N197 a dollar.

He said, “The reason for the current problem is the inability of importers of petroleum products to source foreign exchange at the official rate due to the massive decline of foreign exchange earnings of the Federal Government.

As a result, private marketers have been unable to meet their approximate 50 per cent portion of total national supply of PMS (Premium Motor Spirit, also known as Petrol).” It is against this backdrop that experts say that unless the fuel subsidy is retained, the importers will in the nearest future, increase the pump price of petrol again, otherwise, they will be running at a loss and will not be able to go back and import more. The options available then are that the subsidy is retained and the price pegged or the importers continue to bring in the product at the rate naira is exchanging with the dollar at the forex market and sell as he buys.

The implication, according to a former president of Association of National Accountant of Nigeria (ANAN) Dr. Samuel Nzekwe, is that price of petrol would rise to N200 a litre gvery soon and will then fall down slowly if the naira stabilises.

Meanwhile, the organised labour, accused the President Muhammadu Buhari administration of betrayal of trust reposed on him by Nigerians, stating that the hardship the administration has brought on Nigerians since its inception over a year ago is not in tandem with the change mantra of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) which Nigerians voted for.

President of the Wabbaled faction of NLC, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, at the end of the union’s meeting in Abuja yesterday, lamented that President Muhammadu Buhari had broken his electioneering promise of not removing fuel subsidy if he was elected. According to him, the Congress would on Wednesday May 18 mobilise Nigerians to the streets, close down the airports, sea ports as well as all public and private offices after which he added that the labour unions would direct Nigerian workers to embark on indefinite industrial action as their response to the government’s policy.

The NLC President, who read the communiqué issued at the end of the meeting on behalf of other unions, lamented what he called the Federal Government’s disinclination for consultation on issues of public interest and its obsession with protecting product marketers at the expense of the Nigerian public.

The Comrade Joe Ajeroled NLC, which concluded its emergency Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting, in Lagos yesterday afternoon, said, “Where the government fails to heed these calls and correct itself, we shall be forced to call Nigerian workers and masses out onn the streets all over the country to shut the critical sectors of this economy down for as long as it shall take to force the government to subject itself to the desires of the people.”

Comrade Wabba noted that after his election, President Muhammadu Buhari had maintained that there was no subsidy in the petroleum product price regime and that even if there was, he did not see how its removal would be beneficial to the ordinary Nigerian, noting that the slightest product price adjustment often leads to inflationary spiral and unimaginable suffering for the people.

“On January 18, 2016, the government further allayed the fears of the Nigerian people by reducing the pump price of PMS to N86:50, explaining that the reduction was in furtherance of the implementation of the revised component of the Petroleum Products Pricing for PMS and kerosene,” he said The unions also blasted Kachikwu for allegedly speaking from both sides of his mouth saying, “Whereas last year, he had strongly canvassed for the removal of ‘subsidy’ in defiance of President Buhari, about a month ago, he claimed the subsidy had been removed through his ingenuity and that Nigeria was saving $1billion from this process”.

The unions had, therefore, wondered what informed government’s sudden and dangerous policy summersault and its desperate attempt to convince the public that Labour was part of the decision that led to this price increase.

They further said that the new price announced by the Federal Government without the input of the board of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), which is statutorily vested with powers to recommend price, is illegal, noting that since the board of PPPRA was yet to be constituted, the Federal Government has no right to fix price unilaterally.

While arguing that the new price increase is unrealistic, unaffordable, unacceptable and is thus rejected by Nigerian workers, the NLC President said that there has been no increase, in the past five years, in salaries or wages or pensions in the face of devaluations, spiralling inflation and other vagaries of the economy.

He said that government is unable to justify the price increase other than the puerile explanation that marketers need to recover their costs, without a thought for the aggregate or larger national interest including the need for local refining and creation of jobs.

Speaking also on the increase in electricity tariff, Comrade Wabba said that government has remained recalcitrant in spite of a subsisting court injunction on the issue of the criminal increase in electricity tariff even in the face of everworsening power supply situation. “From the foregoing, it is evident that the neo-liberal forces in the government have taken over the government and we should expect more inhumane policies which will further degrade the living standard of the average Nigerian. The punitive electricity tariff and PMS product prices may just be teasers.

On the position of National Union of Petrol and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and Petrol and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), who have already supported the deregulation of the oil and gas sector, the NLC President said: ”NLC, TUC and other civil society allies are not unaware of the positions taken by the Unions in the oil and gas industry.” “A process of engagement will be put in place in order to ensure the success of the struggle to protect the overall interest of the Nigerian people,” he added.

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