Nationwide Indefinite Strike Begins Monday January 9 - Labour

In what it described as a bid to avert anarchy in the country, organised labour has rescheduled its planned nationwide strike to force the Federal Government to rescind its policy on fuel subsidy.

Leaders of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) said workers would commence a nationwide indefinite strike, mass rallies and street protests on Monday, January 9, instead of two days later announced on Tuesday.

The new date for the strike was arrived at, at the end of an emergency meeting of the National Executive Councils (NECs) of both labour unions Wednesday. The communiqué directed state council chairmen to begin massive mobilisation of workers and the masses ahead of the strike, ordering that all offices, oil production centres, air and sea ports, fuel stations, market and banks, amongst others, should be shut down during the strike.

The communiqué, jointly signed by NLC President, Comrade Abdulwaheed Omar, and his TUC counterpart, Comrade Peter Esele, said the decision to commence the strike on Monday was taken because of the untold hardship workers and other Nigerians were experiencing as a result of the excessive increase in petrol prices which had resulted in sporadic protests by Nigerians.

They advised Nigerians to conduct the protest in a very peaceful manner, adding that the primary objective of the mass action is to restore normalcy and “reclaim Nigeria for Nigerians”.

“Due to untoward hardship workers and other Nigerians are experiencing based on excessive increase in petrol prices, there have been so many sporadic protests by Nigerians in at least 10 cities. These protests, which are peaceful, have witnessed the use of unprecedented force by the police leading to harassment, intimidation, arrests and murder of a protester.

“After exhaustive deliberations and consultations with all sections of the populace, the NLC, TUC and their pro-people allies demand that the Presidency immediately reverses fuel prices to N65. If government fails to do so, they direct that indefinite general strikes, mass rallies and street protests be held across the country with effect from Monday 9th January, 2012. We advise Nigerians to stockpile basic needs especially food and water,” the communiqué stated.

They maintained that there was a subsisting understanding between congress and the Federal Government in 2009 that the removal of subsidy would not commence until certain conditions which included the fixing of all existing refineries and building of new ones, and regular power supply, among others, had been met.

The congress argued that the prohibitive increase in price of PMS once again confirmed the position of labour that deregulation means incessant increase in price of petrol that would adversely impact on the cost of living, cost of production and the general well-being of increasingly impoverished Nigerians.

They called on Nigerians to participate actively in the mass action, while calling on security agencies to reject orders to intimidate and harass protesters, warning that any security agent that does so will be brought to justice.

Briefing journalists Wednesday on the outcome of the meeting in Lagos, Esele said labour would not enter into any form of negotiation with the Federal Government, stating that the committee set up by government was an afterthought.

Also speaking at the press conference, Lagos lawyer and activist, Mr. Femi Falana, said the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) would tomorrow hold a mass protest against the removal of fuel subsidy, revealing that the NLC and TUC had assembled a team of lawyers in case there is any eventuality.