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B N W: Biafra Nigeria World News |
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Protests rock Benin, Ibadan over fuel price increase
AMASSIVE protest against the recent increases in fuel prices was yesterday staged by students of the University of Benin (UNIBEN), who stormed the Edo State Government House and the House of Assembly.
Their counterparts at the University of Ibadan organised a similar protest in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
While the condemnation of the fuel price increases continued across the country, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday proceeded to the Court of Appeal to seek an order staying the execution of a Federal High Court judgment which has ousted the workers body to call its members out on strike.
The UNIBEN students hacked down a giant bill-board of the Edo State Governor Lucky Igbinedion and vandalised a 504 saloon car belonging to the State Director of the State Security Services (SSS), Mr. Emmanuel Babalola.
The Federal Government last week approved a new regime of fuel prices, which has seen petrol rising from N41.50 to between N50 and N65 across the country.
On arrival at the Government House, the UNIBEN students were barred from entering the drive-way that leads to the SSS director's office Mr. Emmanuel Babalola.
Peeved by this, the students brought down the bill-board and vandalised the car.
Having over-powered the SSS boss who was with only two of his men, they marched towards the entrance of the Government House where a battery of mobile policemen stood guard, heavily armed.
Once there, they huddled by the gate demanding to have audience with Igbinedion who was out of town.
When the Deputy Governor Mike Ogiadomhe showed up to address them, the students who were chanting anti-Obasanjo slogans as well as pouring invectives on him, changed their songs and sang "all we are saying, give us Lucky" and "we want Lucky".
The students refused to grant audience to Ogiadomhe, forcing him to leave after about 10 minutes without being allowed to speak.
When they were convinced that the governor was out of town, the protesters presented their address entitled "UNIBEN students vehemently reject the N55 per litre fuel pump price hike".
The letter addressed to President Obasanjo through the Edo State governor read in part "We wish to state emphatically that we reject in its entirety the recent undemocratic, dictatorial and seemingly highhanded pronouncement of your administration relating to fuel pump prices".
Major oil retail outlets in the city were firmly under lock and key.
Panicky retail outlets immediately closed down their stations as the students hijacked vehicles and headed to Government House.
Under the watchful eyes of stern looking policemen, the students marched to downtown Ring Road where they registered their protests at the Edo State House of Assembly before proceeding to the Government House.
On the Uselu-Lagos Road, which leads to UNIBEN, all the major retail outlets which include Oando, National, Mobil, AP and several Independent Marketers hurriedly closed shop when words went around that the protesting students were on their way to the city centre.
The situation on the ever busy Akpakapava Road, which is the home of several Banks and retail outlets was the same. Almost all the retails outlets hurriedly closed shops to business even though the epicentre of the march by the students was at Ring Road.
Transport fares to and from Ugbowo, the site of UNIBEN doubled as drivers refused to ply the route from Ring Road and the popular New Benin terminus. Transport fare to Ugbowo from these two terminus which before now goes for N30 ballooned to N60.
Most motorists withdrew their vehicles from the road while the demonstration lasted. Both Sakpoba Road, Akpakapava, Sapele Road and several others were devoid of their usual hustle and bustle. Things only returned to normal when the students were through and returned to their campus.
Also, aggrieved students of the University of Ibadan yesterday protested round the state capital.
The students, led by the executive of the students union transition committee wondered why President Obasanjo is in support of policies that are unfavourable to the masses.
The Public Relations Officer of the students body, Oloko Afolabi who spoke with The Guardian said that the present administration had been subjecting Nigerians to incessant hardships since assumption of office.
He said: "This suffering must stop, Nigeria is too rich to be undergoing what the masses are going through, deregulation of the downstream sector is a conspiracy of the bourgeoisie against the citizens of this country. For no reason whatsoever should we be buying petrol at such an outrageous prices."
While noting that the latest fuel price increase was the ninth time petroleum product's prices would be jacked up during President Obasanjo's administration, the students expressed concern over why the nation's refineries could not be repaired.
The student subsequently called on the government to rescind its decision, saying that failure to do so might lead to a breakdown of law and order.
The NLC yesterday filed a motion on notice before the Court of Appeal seeking the Appellate court's order staying the execution of the Federal High Court's judgment by Justice Rose Ukeje.
The Labour Union will also pray the Appeal Court, Abuja Division to grant it an order of interlocutory injunction restraining government from imposing the controversial N1.50 kobo petroleum tax per litre of fuel pending the determination of the appeal. The motion on notice filed by Mr Femi Falana, the lead counsel for the NLC was anchored on order 50, Rule 1 of the Federal High court (civil procedure) Rules 2000 and section 241 of the 1999 Constitution.
The Appellants who cited the Federal Government and the Federal Attorney General as Respondents also filed an affidavit of urgency.
In the 8-point affidavits of urgency deposed to by Owei Lakemfa, the Acting General Secretary of the NLC, the union insists that the "expeditious hearing of this appeal is in the interest of justice".
In the substantive appeal, the NLC faulted the entire judgment by Ukeje which voided the Presidency of the union.
The union also in the substantive appeal pointed out 21 grounds of error allegedly made in the judgment delivered on September 21, 2004 by Justice Ukeje, the Chief Judge of Nigeria's Federal High Court.
Among the 21 grounds, the NLC's legal team in the substantive appeal observed that:
"The learned trial judge erred in law when she held that "Both in the Trade Unions Act (Cap 437) and in the Trade Disputes Act (Cap 432) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990, I have searched in vain for the statutory creation or statutory functions of the President, Nigeria Labour Congress. I saw no provision relating to the NLC President. And I was shown no such Law."
The NLC listed the particulars of error to include that: "The issue of the legality of the office of the President of the NLC was neither raised in the relief sought by the parties nor in the issues formulated by them: "The lower court challenged the legality of the office of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress suo motu and proceeded to declare same illegal and unconstitutional;
By outlawing the office of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress in the circumstance, the learned trial judge manifested her undisguised bias in favour of the respondents.
The learned Chief Judge of the Federal High Court held that she was shown no law establishing the office of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress when she never asked for such law;
"By declaring the position of the NLC President illegal without hearing from the appellants, the lower court violated their right to fair hearing guaranteed by Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution and Article 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act (Cap 10) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990.
In ground two, the NLC averred that the learned Chief Judge of the Federal High Court erred in law when she also said in her judgement:
"However, section 34(1) of the Trade Union Act empowers the NLC to make its own fuels.
It is possible that the provision of the President of the NLC was established in-house or under the NLC Rules."
The particulars of errors, according to Labour Union are that: Before turning to create doubt in her mind on the constitutional validity of the position of the NLC President the learned Chief Judge of the Federal High court had concluded that the position was illegal; The lower court engaged in conjectures and speculations after making a far-reaching decision on the position of the President of the Nigeria Labour
Congress:
* The registered constitution of the Nigeria Labour Congress on which the learned Chief Judge of the Federal High Court based her speculations was never tendered in evidence at the trial in the lower court and:
* The lower court deliberately failed to take cognisance of section 52 of the Trade Unions Act (Cap 437) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1999 wherein
an "official" of a trade union is defined to include the President, Secretary or Treasurer and every member of the Committee of Management thereof."
On ground three, the NLC posited that: "The learned Chief Judge of the Federal High Court erred in law when she held that "Also, Mr Oshiomhole, who so claims, has not proved that the office of the President, Nigeria Labour Congress is an institution".
The particular of errors allegedly made by the judge are that: the assertion that the Nigeria Labour Congress was an "institution" was made by Mr. Adams Oshiomhole during this cross -examination by the Respondents'Counsel, Chief Afe Babalola (SAN), the issue of the Nigeria Labour Congress being an institution was never formulated for determination by the parties before the lower court, and since the Nigeria Labour Congress was created by the Trade Unions Act (Cap 437) Laws of the Federations of Nigeria, 1990 as the only Central Labour Organisation, no further proof was required on the part of the 1st Appellant to show that it is an institution.
On ground seven, the Appellants stated that: "The learned Chief Judge of the Federal High Court erred in law when she held that "where Nigeria Labour
Congress acts to call workers out on strike, they act outside the provisions of Section 34(1) and incur the penalty imposed by section 32(2) and (3) of the Trade Unions Act (Cap 437). This is more so where other people that are not members of Trade Unions are involved".
The particulars of errors are that: The penalty for engaging in illegal strike is provided for in section 42 of the Trade Disputes Act (Cap 432) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990 and not section 34(1) of the Trade Unions Act as erroneously held by the learned Chief Judge of the Federal High Court; There was unchallenged evidence that the 29 unions affiliated to the Nigeria Labour Congress had through the Central Working Committee of the Congress mandated the Appellants to enter into collective bargaining in respect of the N1.50k tax, deregulation, monetisation, 12.5per cent wage increase, pension and retrenchment in the public sector, listed in the notice of intention to resume strike dated 7th January 2004, As a Central Labour Organisation the Nigeria Labour Congress has the statutory power under the Trade Disputes Act (Cap 432) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990 to call out workers on strike on disputes including trade disputes between employers and employees and among employees inter se, and, the lower court deliberately ignored the decision of the Court of Appeal in Dr. Taiwo Oloruntoba-Oju Vs Professor Dopamu (2003) 31 WRN 19 where it was held that the dispute over "the repressive style of administration" of the Authorities of the University of Ilorin qualified as a "trade dispute" by virtue of Section 47(1) of the Trade Disputes Act (Cap 4342) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990.
Hearing date has not been fixed as at press time.
Also, the striking Resident Doctors of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, (UBTH) yesterday condemned the fuel price hike, saying it was the height of government's insensitivity to the general despondency faced by Nigerians.
At a press conference to highlight the issues involved in their four-day-old strike, the doctors said the Government's action in raising fuel price shows that it has no plans to combat unemployment, armed robbery, hunger and disease.
According to the doctors, the increases effected last week have the potential of further impoverishing the people and making them unable to afford healthcare in the light of government under-funding of the nation's hospitals.
The President of the Resident Doctors at the UBTH, Dr. Philip Ugbodaga told journalists that under-funding of the hospital was the crux of the matter in the indefinite strike began last Friday.
Ugbodaga said that the under-funding which was not perculiar to UBTH alone had resulted in persistent short-payment of salaries to health workers.
According to him, the UBTH workers received 70 per cent of their salaries in January and 85 per cent in July only to nose-dive to 50 per cent in August payments.
Ugbodaga said the warrant for paying September salaries already shows that workers at the UBTH would get less than 50 per cent of the monthly emoluments.
While urging the Public and National Assembly members to prevail on the government to quickly resolve the issues of shortfall and funding of hospitals, Ugbodaga said UBTH has had to abandon vital aspects of service delivery.
He added that the hospital would require about N450 million to clear the backlog of salary arrears and the payment of the 12 and half per cent increase in salary approved in October last year, non-payment of professional examination entitlements, leave bonuses as well as arrears of 22 per cent increase in basic salaries.`
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