Strike: N’Assembly Leadership Meets Labour, FG Reps

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja 

The leadership of the National Assembly is currently holding a closed-door meeting with the executives of the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Trade Union Congress and the representatives of the Federal Government in the National Assembly complex.

The emergency meeting was summoned by the principal officers of the federal parliament to avert the strike called by the labour unions over the national minimum wage and the hike in the electricity tariff.

The industrial action is expected to commence on Monday (tomorrow),

The NLC Chairman, Joe Ajaero,  and his TUC counterpart, Fetus Osifo, led other executive members of the labour unions to the venue of the meeting holding in the Senate wing of the National Assembly.

The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, are in the meeting.

Also in attendance is the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume; Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun: Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu; Minister of Labour and Productivity, Nkiruruka Onyejeocha; Information Minister, Muhammad Idris, Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi

The meeting is also being attended by the Deputy Senate President, Jibrin Barau and other principal officers of the Senate and House of Representatives.

Akpabio appealed to the organised labour to avoid any form of collateral damage that may occur as a result of their negotiation.

He said, “It will not be proper to create  unemployment especially for the private sector who might resort to sacking their workers in order to pay the minimum wage”.

Akpabio explained that the leadership of the National Assembly had to postpone a trip to Lagos to inspect the projects undertaken by the current administration in the last one year, in order to summon the meeting.

He said, “We are on the side of the people and has to take decisions on anything that would affect them. We are also on the side of the government to implement good policies for Nigerians.

In his speech, the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas urged the leadership of the organised labour to show understanding with the representatives of the Federal Government on the issue of minimum wage and hike in electricity tariff.

He said, “The mistakes of the past can not be resolved within a short period.” He commended the organised Labour for accepting to come for this meeting.

“Your action has shown that hope is not lost on the ongoing dialogue. It is clear that the executive and the organised Labour are desirous of ending the impasse”.

Ajaero told the gathering that the NLC demands were  for all Nigerians. 

He said, “It is imperative that we reason together and resolve the crisis. What we are demanding is survival wage, a living wage and  not starvation wage.”

 Osifo said a labourer deserves his wage but lamented that the situation of the country in the last one year had made things extremely difficult for the Nigerian workers.

He said, “In this country, it’s been very difficult for the workers to survive in the last one year. It is very difficult for them to afford transportation to their places of work.

” They are finding it difficult to feed and meet up with other basic necessities of life. We are not even talking of owning a car.”