The organized labor movement Wednesday asked for President Muhammad Buhari to take all necessary measures to put an end to what it dubbed last-minute treasury theft by departing governors, ministers, and other political office holders.
In a joint address given at the National Workers’ Day celebration held at Eagle Square, Abuja, leaders of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and their counterparts from the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, raised the alarm.
The two labor unions also issued a warning to the next administration, saying that they would fight any increase in gas prices under any pretext, including the elimination of subsidies.
They spoke as Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the incoming president of Nigeria, pledged to pay workers a “living wage” rather than just the legal minimum.
The Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, called on incoming administrations at all levels to initiate, reinvigorate, and focus on policies that promote inclusiveness, protect small and medium-sized enterprises, grow the middle class, and prioritize infrastructural development. In the meantime, President Muhammadu Buhari has urged Tinubu to continue upholding workers’ rights.
In addition, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) urged the government and employers to put workers’ welfare first in the nation, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the main opposition party, urged workers to step up their resistance to anti-democratic forces attempting to seize power in Nigeria.
Organised Labor demanded a probe into the N12 billion spent by the Aviation Ministry to purchase 10 fire vehicles in their joint May Day speech, “Workers Rights and Socio-economic Justice,” which was delivered by Festus Osifo, president of the TUC, and Joe Ajaero, president of the National Labor Congress.
Both the NLC and TUC advised the Federal Government to ignore the International Monetary Fund’s recommendations for tax increases and other economic measures because they were “poisonous to the health of our country’s economy.”
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