The federal government of Nigeria has invited organized labour over in a bid to avert a nationwide strike action called at the instance of the latter over the increase in the pump price of petrol.
The General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson, told Punch newspaper on Sunday that organised labour had received invitations via text messages from the Ministry of Labour to attend the meeting with the government at the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).
Ozo-Eson said while organised labour would honour the invitation to attend the meeting, the only thing that could stop the planned action was a reversal of the fuel price increase and the 46 per cent increase in electricity tariff.
He said if the Federal Government failed to reverse the two increases, the government should be prepared to meet Nigerians on the streets.
Ozo-Eson added that the first meeting between organised labour and the Federal Government over the dispute would hold at 3pm on Monday.
He said, “I have received a text message inviting us to a meeting tomorrow (Monday) at the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, and we will attend.
‘‘We will attend those meetings but the notice given is not conditional to our action. It is conditional on the reversal of the hike in the price of petroleum and the hike in electricity tariff.
“But we are saying that is not what is crucial; what is crucial is that we will mobilise unless there is reversal. If there is no reversal, we will meet on the streets.”
Ozo-Eson dismissed the reports attributed to the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, that the increase was necessitated by the scarcity of foreign exchange.
He said it was inconceivable for the government to make an arrangement that would allow the black market exchange rate determine the price of fuel in the country.
He argued that there was nothing new in what Mohammed said as it was part of the presentation by the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, which was rejected by organised labour.
He stated, “The nation does not submit to the pronouncement that the fate of Nigerians will now be determined by black market exchange rate because that is the bottom line of what they are doing.
“There is nothing new in what he is saying; we reject it and the position we are taking is based on part of that information. It changes nothing. It is unacceptable.”
Labour had given the federal government until midnight on Tuesday to reverse the increase or face an indefinite national strike.
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