New Year Message: NLC wants fuel scarcity, minimum wage, Non-payment of salaries, LG autonomy addressed

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), in its New Year message has raised critical issues ranging from fuel scarcity, minimum wage, Non-payment of salaries, LG autonomy among others, which need immediate and effective handling and resolution to be addressed in 2018.

In a statement signed by the NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, on behalf of the National Executive Council (NEC), the congress tasks the various levels and arms of government to work assiduously on these issues to bring the desire change.

Apart from the issues of socio-economic situation of workers, good governance and anti-corruption crusade, and general overview of the state of the nation, the congress raised issues of fuel scarcity and the petroleum industry, the new national minimum wage, non-payment of salaries and pensions to workers and pensioners, local government autonomy and Governor Nasir-Rufai’s draconian government in Kaduna State.

The NLC has, however vowed to hold government accountable on these issues in the New Year. The detailed positions of NLC on these vital issues are:

Fuel scarcity and the petroleum industry

In the last three weeks, Nigerians have witnessed one of the worst shortages in the supply of petrol in the history of the country. This is in spite of Federal Government’s repeated claim that with the complete removal of subsidy on petroleum products, scarcity of petroleum products would become a thing of the past.

We have therefore in the last few weeks watched with dismay the unfortunate blame game, accusations and counter accusations between petroleum marketers: Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association (DAPPMA), and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), on who is responsible for the current scarcity.

For us in the congress, our position with regard to the prevailing situation in the petroleum industry remains constant, which is that the crisis in the industry is squarely due to the inability or refusal of our ruling elite to refine all our petroleum needs in Nigeria. We are the only major producer of crude oil in the world that depends on importation of refined products from abroad. As long as this remains the case, Nigerians would continue to be subjected to this intermittent scarcity.

We had explicitly stated this fact in our 188-page report of the NLC Committee on Deregulation submitted to the Yar’Adua government in 2010 and which we gave to top officials of this administration when they assumed office in 2015. We wish to note that this report was a product of consultations with key stakeholders in Nigeria, from the Governors Forum (then under the chairmanship of Dr Bukola Saraki as Governor of Kwara State, now the current Senate President), NNPC, Ministry of Finance, Major Markers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and CSOs, among others.

It was on the basis of the above conviction that the congress went on national protest in May 2016, following the 66 per cent increase from N86.50 per litre to N145 per litre, in the price of petrol by the current government in the name of total removal of subsidy.

For us in the congress, and for majority of working people in Nigeria, the hope placed on the capacity of President Buhari to bring about positive change is being undermined by his government’s inability to address the infrastructural deficit and other related problems in the oil industry, such as making our existing refineries work at optimal capacity by refining products for domestic consumption. Not only is government unable to achieve this for almost three years now, but moving forward more refineries, especially modular refineries which can be built between 12 and 18 months are required to address the re-occurring challenge of fuel scarcity and price hike in Nigeria and stop the exploitation of ordinary Nigerians. The inherent corruption in the system has made this impossible for more than three decades and should be addressed headlong.

New national minimum wage

Following the recent inauguration of the tripartite National Minimum Wage Negotiating Committee by President Buhari, it is the expectation of Nigerian workers that the committee under the chairmanship of Ms Ama Pepple, former Head of Service of the Federation, will expeditiously conclude its assignment. This is because a new national minimum wage has been due for over a year now. It is also our expectation that upon completion of negotiations, the National Assembly will give the executive bill that will emerge, an accelerated passage for the new national minimum wage to become a reality before the end of the 3rd quarter of 2018.

Non-payment of salaries and pensions to workers and pensioners

We noted earlier that we entered into the New Year with several states owing workers arrears of several months of salaries and pensions. We wish to re-state our determination to continue to mobilise for the full payment of these outstanding salaries and pensions.

As we approach the 2019 general elections, workers will certainly not forget governors that subjected them to untold hardship by refusal to pay their earned entitlements on the excuse of scarcity of resources while choosing to pay themselves, their political appointees and cronies’ huge packages.

Local government autonomy

Congress appreciates the recent passage of three core bills on Local Government autonomy in Nigeria by the National Assembly. It is our belief that the passage of the constitutional amendment to  guarantee Local Government autonomy will promote good governance and deepen democratic culture at the grassroots level.

We therefore call on the State Houses of Assembly to demonstrate courage, patriotism and assert their desired independence by passing these constitutional amendment bills designed towards emancipating our local governments and freeing their finances from being usurped by governors who are determined to truncate the quest for democratisation at the local government level.

In the same vein, we call on the National Assembly and State Houses of Assemblies to ensure that payment of primary school teachers’ salaries is put on first line charge of the Federation Account to assuage the fears of all stakeholders in the local government system.

Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s draconian government in kaduna state

We wish to once again draw the attention the Presidency and Nigerians in general to the ongoing draconian leadership of the Kaduna State government under Mallam Nasir El-Rufa as governor. A couple of months ago, Governor El-Rufai by administrative fiat dismissed over 22,000 primary school teachers in the state under the excuse that they failed to pass assessment tests that the authorised teaching regulatory body did not conduct. Similarly, El-Rufai equally sacked over 4,500 local government employees in the state.

Despite the wise counsel of well-meaning Nigerians and protestations from the congress, including an injunction from the National Industrial Court (NIC) which had ruled that the status quo should be maintained till the determination of the substantive suit brought before it by the unjustly dismissed workers and unions in Kaduna State, Governor El-Rufai, like all despots, has remained adamant.

Last Friday, December 29, 2017, Governor El-Rufai authorised education secretaries and relevant local government authorities to commence the distribution of sack letters to teachers and local government workers in the 23 local government areas of the state beginning from Tuesday, January 2, 2018.

While some state governments are struggling to devise ways of bringing succour to workers and the people generally in the New Year, Governor El-Rufai’s Christmas and New Year gifts to the working people of Kaduna State and their families is tears and sorrow.

Under this atmosphere of disregard for the rule of law and decency, congress is left with no other option than to use all legitimate means to challenge the crass impunity and despotism being displayed by Governor El-Rufai. It will therefore give effect to the Congress National Executive Council (NEC) decision to observe January 11, 2018 as a day of solidarity with the workers of Kaduna State and shall mobilise Nigerian workers to march for the reversion of the sacked workers in Kaduna City.