|
New Page 6
Fuel price strike:
FG, Labour meet today
ABIODUN ADELAJA, VINCENT EGUNYANGA,
Abuja and FRANCIS AWOWOLE-BROWNE, Lagos.
SIX days to
the expiration of the October 11 deadline given by Labour for the reversal of
the fuel price hike, government has invited the leadership of the Nigeria Labour
Congress (NLC) to a meeting today in Abuja over the matter.
NLC had declared that it would lead
workers on a nationwide sit-at-home protest from October 11 should government
fail to revert to the old pump prices of petroleum products.
Government’s invitation to the NLC came as
political parties, except the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rose in
condemnation of the hike even as the House of Representatives is to discuss the
price hike today.
Labour leaders are expected to meet with
the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Hassan Mohammed Lawal in the
Minister’s office within the Federal Secretariat Complex, Abuja by 10.00am.
The planned meeting, it was gathered, is
to enable government and Labour dialogue on the fuel price hike and for the
former "to defend the action and ask Nigerians to bear with the new price
regime."
Though NLC president, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole
is away to the United States of America (US), but vice president of the
Congress, Mr. Henry Adekwe told Daily Champion late last night that
Labour would honour the invitation.
He said that the NLC leadership would only
offer to dialogue with government if the minister apologised to them over a
statement credited to him on the planned strike in which he was said to have
accused NLC of having lost focus and pursuing personal agendas.
Mr. Adekwe stated that the meeting would
be a mere formality because "we know the minister does not possess the mandate
to roll back the hike."
He, however, hinged Labour’s readiness to
dialogue with not just government but all groups desirous of making the
government see reason along with the people that the hike in fuel prices was
inhuman.
Similar meeting was said to have been held
with leaders of civil society groups by the minister in Abuja to explain
government’s position on the new price hike.
Though, it could not be confirmed details
of what were discussed but it was gathered that the civil society leaders stick
to their gun to team up with Labour to have the hike reversed.
Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP),
the coalition of all the opposition parties, said yesterday that it supports the
labour sit-at-home action called for October 11.
House of Representative Speaker Aminu
Bello Masari, speaking in the House yesterday, however, noted that he had not
received any formal communication from the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) over
the impending confrontation.
Arising from an emergency executive
committee meeting in Abuja yesterday, the CNPP said it "supports the NLC’s
proposed strike" beginning next Monday.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja after the
meeting CNPP secretary-general Maxi Okwu of the All Progressives Grand Alliance
(APGA) called on the Federal Government to "bring back" the price of petroleum
products to N34 per litre.
He questioned the rationale behind asking
Nigerians to pay higher for fuel at a time when the country was making excess
money and profit from the global increases in pump price of fuel.
Mr. Okwu said the CNPP would mobilise all
its members across the nation to join the NLC strike.
Meanwhile CNPP has condemned the continued
harassment of Nigerians by men of the State Security Service (SSS).
The conference particularly condemned the
harassment of APGA presidential candidate Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu.
CNPP secretary General Maxi Okwu said the
conference also condemned the closure of Insider magazine and the seizure
of copies of the magazine by men of SSS.
Still on fuel price hike, the House of
Representatives deferred till today (Wednesday) debate on the vexatious matter
for which the NLC issued Federal authorities a 14-day ultimatum.
Speaker Masari said he was yet to receive
any letter from the NLC on the matter, but expressed concern over the hike in
prices.
"For clarity, let me say that I have not
received any communication either from the NLC or the Executive branch (the
Presidency) concerning the strike, Alhaji Masari said.
Yet, the quest by some federal law makers
for the House to commence debate on the price hike, however, could not scale
through as Alhaji Masari cautioned that the issue at stake was beyond mere
condemnation of the hike by the House but they should also come up with workable
solution towards resolving the problem.
"I don’t want us to look at this issue as
just condemning it without coming up with a solution. We either play to the
gallery or come out with something," the Speaker advised.
Based on the Speakers advice, the House
through voice vote resolved to defer till today (Wednesday) debate on the
products price hike as well as the impending NLC strike.
Meanwhile the House yesterday passed a
motion directing its committee on National Security and Intelligence as well as
Justice to investigate the SSS siege on the Insider magazine and report
back to the parliament for further action.
|
