PANAPRESS
Panafrican News Agency
Nigeria: Labour shuns court order as strike begins over new fuel price
Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - Despite the order on Monday from the National Industrial Court sitting in Abuja stopping the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trades Union Congress (TUC) from embarking on the planned strike over the increase in fuel price, the labour unions have insisted on going ahead with the action beginning Wednesday.
The Federal Government last week increased the price of fuel from 86.50 Naira to 145 Naira (US$ 1= 200 Naira officially) per litre, and this sparked the threat from organised labour unions to commence a nationwide strike unless the situation was reversed.
Local media reports said efforts at a resolution of the crisis between the leadership of the NLC and the government, including a special ad-hoc committee set up by the House of Representatives to avert the strike, ended in a deadlock.
There were indications that the insistence of government on selling petrol at 145 Naira per litre and taking labour unions before the Industrial Court may have hardened Labour’s resolve to go ahead with the strike.
The reports said as the NLC was holding its emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting at the Labour House on Monday, information filtered in that the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, had approached the court to declare the strike illegal.
This jolted the members of the NEC who expressed dismay at the turn of events and resolved to proceed on the industrial action.
Not only did they move a motion stopping the President of Congress, Ayuba Wabba, and his team from attending a scheduled meeting with the House of Representatives, they also suggested that Labour should boycott a meeting slated with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), David Lawal, which was scheduled to be held later.
Meanwhile, the Senate rose from a one-hour, closed-door meeting over the fuel issue, calling on the Executive to speedily provide palliatives to cushion the effects of the price increase.
The closed-door session, which was presided over by the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, also called on organised labour and other stakeholders to show commitment to resolving the issues in order not to jeopardise the economy. He said that the Senate sympathised with the ordinary people over the hardships they were going through.
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) have urged the Federal Government to engage with stakeholders in the oil and gas sector and work out a clear direction on how to reinvest the gains of fuel price regulation in the economy.
In a statement issued at the end of the joint National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held in Calabar, PENGASSAN and NUPENG said price deregulation had its benefits in the immediate and near future with an urgent need for a paradigm shift and a new direction in the management of new investment and income in the oil and gas industry.
But the National President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, has mobilised members of the union for the strike to force the Federal Government to reverse the pump price.
In a letter sent to members of the congress nationwide and read at the University of Ibadan Chapter by its branch Chairman, Dr. Deji Omole, the university teachers expressed their readiness to join in the protest against government’s policy.
But the Executive Secretary of the Electricity Workers Union, Joe Ajaero, speaking on behalf of the leadership of the unions, disassociated themselves from the proposed strike.
It is now left to be seen if the strike will be successful.
-0- PANA VAO/MA 18May2016
The Federal Government last week increased the price of fuel from 86.50 Naira to 145 Naira (US$ 1= 200 Naira officially) per litre, and this sparked the threat from organised labour unions to commence a nationwide strike unless the situation was reversed.
Local media reports said efforts at a resolution of the crisis between the leadership of the NLC and the government, including a special ad-hoc committee set up by the House of Representatives to avert the strike, ended in a deadlock.
There were indications that the insistence of government on selling petrol at 145 Naira per litre and taking labour unions before the Industrial Court may have hardened Labour’s resolve to go ahead with the strike.
The reports said as the NLC was holding its emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting at the Labour House on Monday, information filtered in that the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, had approached the court to declare the strike illegal.
This jolted the members of the NEC who expressed dismay at the turn of events and resolved to proceed on the industrial action.
Not only did they move a motion stopping the President of Congress, Ayuba Wabba, and his team from attending a scheduled meeting with the House of Representatives, they also suggested that Labour should boycott a meeting slated with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), David Lawal, which was scheduled to be held later.
Meanwhile, the Senate rose from a one-hour, closed-door meeting over the fuel issue, calling on the Executive to speedily provide palliatives to cushion the effects of the price increase.
The closed-door session, which was presided over by the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, also called on organised labour and other stakeholders to show commitment to resolving the issues in order not to jeopardise the economy. He said that the Senate sympathised with the ordinary people over the hardships they were going through.
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) have urged the Federal Government to engage with stakeholders in the oil and gas sector and work out a clear direction on how to reinvest the gains of fuel price regulation in the economy.
In a statement issued at the end of the joint National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held in Calabar, PENGASSAN and NUPENG said price deregulation had its benefits in the immediate and near future with an urgent need for a paradigm shift and a new direction in the management of new investment and income in the oil and gas industry.
But the National President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, has mobilised members of the union for the strike to force the Federal Government to reverse the pump price.
In a letter sent to members of the congress nationwide and read at the University of Ibadan Chapter by its branch Chairman, Dr. Deji Omole, the university teachers expressed their readiness to join in the protest against government’s policy.
But the Executive Secretary of the Electricity Workers Union, Joe Ajaero, speaking on behalf of the leadership of the unions, disassociated themselves from the proposed strike.
It is now left to be seen if the strike will be successful.
-0- PANA VAO/MA 18May2016
