Fuel price hike: NLC meets today to review strike
The Nigeria Labour Congress has called
an emergency meeting of its organs – the National Working Committee and
the National Executive Committee – for Sunday (today) to deliberate on
the ongoing strike and the way forward.
The General Secretary of the NLC, Dr.
Peter Ozo-Eson, told our correspondent on the telephone on Saturday that
the major organs of the congress would meet to appraise the indefinite
strike called to protest the recent increase in the fuel pump price from
N86 to N86.50k to N145.
Ozo-Eson said that the decision to call
the meeting was not as a result of the peace parley between chieftains
of the All Progressives Congress, led by its national leader, Asiwaju
Bola Tinubu, and the leaders of the organised labour at the Labour House
on Friday.
Tinubu and Governor Rauf Aregbesola of
Osun State had appealed to the NLC under the leadership of Mr. Ayuba
Wabba to call off the current strike in the interest of the country.
The NLC scribe said that the Federal
Government had not contacted the congress for talks after the meeting of
the delegation from the APC with the NLC.
He said, “There has been no such move and no communication from them (the government).
It is normal that we called a meeting to
look at where we are and at what is happening. We will put all the
facts on the table and discuss.
“We should be meeting some of our organs
tomorrow (Sunday) evening. Both organs, (the NEC and the National
Working Committee) will meet. We want to be able to have good
information and first and information across the country, as to know
where we are and where we are going.”
Ozo-Eson, who also spoke on the comment
by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, that resumed
talks with the organised labour could only commence if the strike was
called off, noted that only the organs of the NLC could take a decision
on that.
“We have never foreclosed negotiation; the organ will take that decision, there is no position as of now.
“Like we keep emphasising, we are a
democratic body, we have all the state councils making up NEC, we have
all the industrial unions making up NEC, when we discuss these things,
whatever is the democratic decision is what we implement,” he added.
Also the Deputy President of the NLC,
Mr. Peter Adeyemi, responded to the statement by the minister of labour.
He said that the labour would not take dictations from the government.
He stated, “We don’t take dictation from
government. The minister of labour and employment can say anything. He
is entitled to his opinion.”
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