•••Says no retreat, no surrender!
From our Correspondent, Benin
On Monday, 3 June, 2024 the Nigeria Labour movement (NLC, and TUC) in Benin-City, the Edo State Capital shut down government offices in strict compliance with the directive of the national leadership.
Labour last week mobilised members for the strike after it pulled out of the minimum wage tripartite negotiation meeting for workers.
Our reporter went round Benin and found that Government offices were shut to workers, with only officials monitoring the action manning the entry gates.
At Egor Local Government Council Secretariat in Uselu, about 9.00 am a handful of workers were seen loitering around and the gates shut, also, the offices.
Comrade Aighobayi, Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Council Employees (NULGE) Egor Chapter said they were participating in the strike in sympathy with workers in other States who are yet to get a salary increase.
This is because injury to one, is injury to all as the slogan of labour; otherwise in Edo, the Governor, Godwin Obaseki has demonstrated human feelings by increasing the salary of workers to a minimum of N70,000.
Also, NULGE in Egor is participating in the strike following the refusal of the Federal Government to reverse the electricity tariff increase from N65 to N225, per kwh and the stratification of consumers, he said.
"For us in Edo State, we are fortunate to have a governor who is workers friendly who has been the first to implement N40,000 minimum wage and as we speak, he has equally implemented N70,000 minimum wage effect from May 2024.
"We are already enjoying it, we were surprised by the May salary when we saw our alert!
"But you know the sloganeering of the Union movement; 'injury to one, is injury to all that is why we are joining them in sympathy strike here in Edo State.
"We are very much in support of Labour push for the Federal Government reversal of the electricity tariff back to the old tariff of N65 per kwh.
"You cannot come to increase diesel, fuel, and the only thing poor Nigerians can benefit, you take it to over N200; that is not fair enough!
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"So, we demand the Federal Government to renege on its stand so that the common man on the streets can breathe like the President's slogan; 'Let the poor breathe."
In Oredo Local Government Council Secretariat at Kings Square, Benin-City, it was also a total compliance with officials of Labour manning the entry gates.
Chairman NULGE in the Council area Osabuohien John restated the earlier assertion of the Egor NULGE Chairman that Edo was only in solidarity with workers in other parts of Nigeria having gotten N70,000 minimum wage increase from the State Government.
Though the strike was the only way to go due to the prevailing excruciating pain Nigerians are going through with the seeming insensitivity of the Federal Government not helping matters, he added.
He declared; "as it is; the strike is indefinite until the Federal Government decides to meet the demands of Labour."
While at the State Secretariat also known as 'Palm House' along the Benin-Sapele road the gates were all locked with labour officials keeping watch and no worker in sight.
The State Secretariat was the convergence point for all the top leaders of Labour both TUC and NLC coordinating and monitoring the action for total compliance.
In an interview with our reporter, the State Chairman of TUC Comrade Peter Asemota said the "Leadership of Labour has been resolute and clear on the issues that we are not going back on the indefinite strike action until our two points demands are met.
"And what are the two points demands? One, that we should go back to the negotiation table until we get a reasonable living minimum wage.
"The second demand is that the Federal Government should reverse the hiked electricity tariff which increased from N65 to N225 per kwh.
"There is a procedure for doing because it was established by the Act of Parliament and that Act stipulates that whenever there is the need for increase, all the stakeholders must be convened of which Labour is part of the stakeholders and clearly stated in the Act.
"And to arrive at an amount, everybody must agree but this was unilateral and unprocedural and as usual which as become
characteristic of the Federal Government, they do not follow procedures and policy.
"So we are asking that we should go back to the round table and discuss issues."
Defending Labour agitation for a reasonable minimum wage increase, he said in the last three years prices of goods and services have risen over 40 percent and inflation is ever on the high.
Adding that the demands were based on the calculation of the various determinate factors and based on the situation today, the value of the N30,000 minimum wage three years ago is equivalent to the sum of N180,000 today.
Relying on the prevailing various economic indicators, should it be taken at N180,000 we would be where we used to be three years ago and it means their lives have not been improved, Asemota argued.
"This is why Labour is resolute on its demands. We are not saying that we will not shift ground, but we are saying that our position was arrived at based on well guided calculation."
The Labour leader was told that there is the argument in some quarters that Labour ought to have fought the Government on all the anti people policies like they are doing now against the electricity tariff increase; which have helped in growing inflation on the rapid, instead of salary increase which may not change anything at the end of the day going by experiences of previous salary increase.
The Labour leader in reaction said "we don't want this happen hence we have carefully done the calculation to guide against even anticipated reactionary inflation that will occur.
"Currently, Labour has proposed the sum of N495,000 as the minimum living wage but the Government is still far off our demand. It is putting forward the sum of N60,000 which we all know cannot really take anybody home.
"But you see that there is a trend; the Government is paying deaf ears to the yearnings of the people.
"This is the same Government that removed fuel subsidy which was running into over five trillions of Naira and now where is the money going into?
"We are not even saying they should generate money from other sources but just reallocate this money."
Continuing, he wondered that the same Government that could afford to spend several billions on pilgrimage which ought to be a private affair and within 48 hours return Nigerians to the old national anthem, is finding it difficult to address the challenges and demands of the people.
"So we suspect that there is a grand design to deliberately keep the people poor so that they can continue to control them and the organised Labour is saying no to this!"
He however appeals that the public should understand the demands of Labour are not mere sentiments, but real life issues.
"We have submitted all the indicators, we have submitted all the areas we think the Government is spending wrongly so that it can reallocate. So, we think that our demand is fair!"
Asked how long Labour is sustaining the strike action, he declared; "it is going to be indefinite, we are resolute on this!
"We will continue to stand down against the Government until they do the right thing! It took them 48 hours to review and pass into law the reversal to the old national anthem and we ask that they should do the same thing in matters that concerns the every day life of the Nigeria worker.
"You may argue the civil service is just 1.2 million people but when you extend it, a lot of dependents are tied to them and even the private sector takes a cue from this.
"So we believe this should be the case, we have provided a rationale argument towards our position and we want the Government to counter it with something rationale rather than giving in to blackmail and speaking to people to ask Labour to back down.
"So, we are demanding; when we say let the poor breathe we are not saying it out of mere rhetoric, we are not saying it out of mere slogan but because we want the common man whether he is organised or not, whether he is employed or not, we want the common man to be able to live; that is exactly our demand!"
The Acting Secretary NLC Edo State comrade Erhiyo Kingsley said the strike action had to go on due to the insincerity of Government.
As he noted that what the Government is doing is nothing different from the usual, trying to see if they can buy time as if they can play with the psyche of workers.
Reacting to a question on why not Labour fighting Government on anti people policies, high cost of governance like the fight against hike in electricity tariff instead of salary increase which many argue will only help kick up the already staggering inflation, he stated;
"I agree with you in the sense that if we have a level playing ground we would have been asking the government to focus on stabilizing prices."
He pointed out that while the agitation for salary increase was yet to be addressed, government came up with the hike in the tariff of electricity as if they are not in the system.
He wondered why the Government would up prices when the people are already in pain.
"So, we want to say that when we are done having something meaningful for workers, the Government should try to keep the price as it is because the problem we have is one of a system which does not stabilise price.
"In summary, we need salary increase to be able to do the needful to enable us live as humans!"
The strike in the public sector continued throughout the day except the private sector which opened for business.
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