The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has called on the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration to revert to the status quo over its decision to end payment of subsidy on petrol.
TUC President, Mr Festus Osifo, disclosed this while addressing journalists at the end of an emergency meeting of the congress’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting on Friday in Abuja, the capital.
The TUC president noted that the Union is not pleased with the unilateral decision of the Federal Government to bring subsidy to a halt without relating directly with the body.
“Having noted this, we wish to state that the NEC-in- session resolved that discussions with Federal Government should continue while demanding that the government should revert to the status quo ante.
“The status quo ante should be maintained while discussions continue as we had a meeting with the government on Wednesday.
“During that discussion, they gave us a list of all the things they would do and they also demanded to know our thinking and what we are putting up.
“We told them the lists of the things we want to put forward, we will not submit them now but put them forward to our organs, to discuss and seek a mandate from them of the things we can put forward,’ ‘he said.
According to Osifo, the union’s next course of action would be determined by how the government responds to the TUC’s requests.
“We will wait till Sunday when we will meet with the representatives of the government.
“Once we are done with that meeting then the TUC is going to put its demands forward, it is how they react to those demands that will determine our next line of action, ”he said.
Integrity News reported that the Nigeria Labour Congress announced a nationwide strike starting from next week Wednesday in protest of the current hike in prices of fuel in the country.
The planned protest would be the first major test for new President Bola Ahmed Tinubu after he announced the removal of an expensive fuel subsidy during his inauguration speech.
The adjustment in the price of fuel in Nigeria has resulted in a significant increase in transportation fees with many commercial transporters blaming the hike in the price of the commodity.