The President of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, elaborated on the reasons behind the union’s decision to organize a nationwide hunger protest on February 27 and 28. Ajaero, speaking on SaharaReporters’ X space on Friday evening, clarified that the Trade Union Congress (TUC) was not involved in the planned protest from the outset.
When asked about the specific challenges facing Nigerians that led to the declaration of the two-day protest and the stance of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Ajaero pointed out the high costs of food items, cement, and transportation, attributing them to the removal of fuel subsidies.
He said, “Clearly speaking, TUC has never been part of the action from conception. The only warning signal was the TUC coming out to say they are not part of it, even when we didn’t say they are part of it.
“For them to have gone further to deduce some letters disassociating themselves and leaking it to the media. Such statements were unprovoked. Their letter coming the same day the DSS sent a letter to us, warning us to shelve the protest, gives course to odd.
“The NLC at its National Executive Council last Friday, resolved to have a two-day protest on the cost of living on the high sea faced by Nigerians, and by implication, workers, to make their (NLC) position known, not just to the government but to every Nigerian.”
Ajaero said that the NLC in its response told the DSS “To keep their unsolicited advice; because history will not forgive NLC if we should keep quiet at this moment in Nigeria’s political history.”
Regarding the mobilization efforts for the upcoming protest, the NLC President stated that all industrial unions nationwide, along with the 36 state councils and Abuja, had unanimously agreed to coordinate the protest. He mentioned that the union had begun distributing mobilization materials to all states and had convened numerous meetings with civil society allies.
Ajaero said that “The whole crisis of this hardship and hunger started with the removal of fuel subsidy,” stressing that “The moment that was touched, transportation and everything associated with it went up, that even if a wanted to go to a bush market to buy plantain, before she would transport it to the town, a lot of money has gone into it, and it will go out of the reach of an ordinary man.”
He said that this was further aggravated by the free float of the Naira “Where Naira today is getting to almost N2,000 per Dollar.”
According to him, “The implication of that is that every other neighbouring country’s currencies are higher than Nigeria in value and that has led to a very large extent, the issue of smuggling.
“For a businesswoman, no matter how primitive and local, who knows that if she sells a paint of garri for N3,000, if she takes it through the border between Nigeria and Cotonou or Nigeria and Niger Republic, she will sell it maybe for N7,000, she would find her way to that area. To that extent, food will no longer be cheap and available to the common man.”
Additionally, the NLC President pointed out that some individuals with children studying abroad are currently facing significant hardships.
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