The organised Labour on Monday began mobilising its members for a nationwide protest slated for February 27 and 28 over the cost of living crisis in the country.

Sources in the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress told our correspondents that the National Executive Council met via Zoom on Friday, February 16, to review the resolution of the National Action Council of the NLC and the Trade Union Congress via-a-vis organised labour agreement with the Federal Government.

Rising from the crucial meeting,  the labour unions, sources said, agreed to demand the implementation of the agreement with the Federal Government without further delay.

“The NLC at its Zoom meeting held on Friday, February 16, 2024, resolved in line with the resolution of NAC of NLC and that of the TUC, which demands that the agreement between the leadership of the two labour centres and government be implemented without further delay,” a source told the Press.

The Federal Government’s failure to fulfil its promises after the 14-day ultimatum by Labour, according to sources, will be met with two-day nationwide protest already slated for February 27 and 28.

The Head of Information of the NLC, Benson Upah, who confirmed the resolution of the meeting, told one of our correspondents on the telephone that the NLC affiliates were being mobilised for the protest just as state chapters of the congress vowed to join the nationwide demonstration.

Upah told one of our correspondents that the protest would be held as planned and agreed at the meeting.

Asked if the union would shelve the protest, he responded, “Why would we back down? Has anything changed to warrant that? For your information, we are mobilising in earnest,” he added.

A memo obtained by one of our correspondents and dated February 18, 2024, also confirmed the meeting and the resolution reached.

Signed by General Secretary of the National Union of Public Service Reportorial, Secretarial, Data Processors, and Allied Workers Union, Duro Adebisi, and titled, ‘Mobilisation for Nationwide Protest’ the memo read, “I write in reference to the subject matter above to inform you that the NEC of Nigeria Labour Congress at its Zoom meeting held on Friday, February 16, 2024 resolved in line with the resolution of NAC of NLC and that of the TUC, which demands that the agreement between the leadership of the two labour centres and government be implemented without further delay. But that if otherwise, after the expiration of the 14-day ultimatum, which will elapse on 22nd February 2024, affiliates should direct its members across the board for a two-day nationwide protest on 27th and 28th February 2024, respectively.

“Comrades, arising from the paragraph above, the National Secretariat of our union is hereby requesting your council to start mobilising our members in collaboration with your state/federal NLC to ensure/encourage our active participation in the said action (s).”

As labour unions mobilised their members for the nationwide protest, there were fuel queues in Kano, Kaduna, Rivers, and Ogun states, as well as Abuja, on Monday following the strike embarked upon by the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners.

On Friday, INTEGRITY NEWS reported that the country might witness another round of fuel scarcity as NARTO vowed to stop lifting petroleum products beginning from Monday (yesterday) due to the high cost of operations.

NARTO members raised concern over the high cost of diesel required to power their trucks to transport petroleum products across the country.

The Federal Government had ordered oil marketers to negotiate with NARTO to avert tanker drivers’ planned suspension of operations.

It was learnt that oil marketers and the officials of NARTO met about six times between Saturday and Sunday following the declaration of the petroleum products’ transporters to halt operations.

As the Federal Government battled to end the tanker drivers’ strike, the NLC on Monday vowed not to back down on the planned protests.

The NLC’s National President, Joe Ajaero, said last week that the protest would begin a week after the expiration of the 14-day ultimatum it issued to the federal government, which will expire on February 23.

The organised labour lamented that millions of Nigerian workers were facing hunger, erosion of purchasing power, and insecurity due to reforms that drove up inflation.

Ajaero, who spoke during a briefing with journalists in Abuja, noted that the decision followed an emergency National Executive Council meeting on the state of the economy and matters related to insecurity in the country.

END.