The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress on Wednesday morning kicked off nationwide workers’ protests to draw attention to rising cost of living occasioned by the recent fuel pump price hike.
They expressed anger over the pains the sudden fuel subsidy removal was inflicting on the masses while the elected leaders and politicians continue to receive jumbo pay and live an ostentatious lifestyle.
They also complained about the latest increase in tuition fees in public schools and withheld salaries of lecturers and workers in the universities.
The unions said even as they opposed the sudden removal of the fuel subsidy without putting in place measures to cushion its effects on the people, they are particularly angered by the flamboyant lifestyle of the elected leaders and lack of sacrifice on their side.
This message was presented via the Twitter of the NLC and reflected in the various captions of the placards displayed by protesting workers on Wednesday.
The protests commenced at 7:30am simultaneously in Abuja and state capitals nationwide.
In Lagos, protesters converged on the Ikeja Under-Bridge on Obafemi Awolowo Way.
In a nationwide broadcast on Monday, Tinubu reeled out palliatives that would cushion the impact of the subsidy removal on the masses.
But some labour leaders faulted Tinubu for not saying anything about the local refineries and when the nation would stop importation of fuel.
During Wednesday’s protests, there was heavy security presence at the Unity Fountain, Abuja, and Ikeja in Lagos where the rallies were monitored as taking place.
The NLC said, “So there is no plan to revive our refineries or to build a new one? That means the poor would be left to suffocate with a monopolized refinery and ever increasing price of petrol.
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“You saved one trillion naira from the two times increase in the price of petrol, which was inflicted on the poor. Nothing was saved from any reduction in the cost of governance and jumbo allowances by politicians.”
NLC Head of Information, Benson Upah, told journalists that workers and civl society organisations would converge on the Unity Fountain Abuja, to kick-start the protest while the state chapters would commence protest at the same time.
He added that the focus of the international community is on the Federal government to see how they truly treat their citizens.
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