Fuel Strike: NLC Begins Mobilisation
Minister: Labour has derailed _IG meets police chiefs
From George Oji, Josephine Lohor, Chucks Okocha in Abuja, Chris Nwachukwu in Enugu and Abimbola Akosile in Lagos
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday began its nationwide mobilisation for the mass protest against the recent increases in the pump prices of petroleum products, which is scheduled to begin on October 11.
The Nigeria Police on the other hand, has equally begun mapping out strategies to contain the planned strike, as the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Tafa Balogun, yesterday met with police chiefs across the country.
Also, the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Hassan Lawal, said the NLC has derailed and abandoned its mandate.
Speaking while flagging off the mobilisation campaign in Enugu, NLC President Adams Oshiomhole said the structure of the Congress is being reorganised to make it more flexible in such a manner that at every point there is a leadership structure to spearhead the action.
Oshiomhole said that the NLC was also mapping out strategies to counter any clampdown on its leaders.
The NLC leader who addressed a workers' gathering under the platform of Chemical Union, said that various levels of leadership base is also being created in a manner that the protest will not revolve around any individual or group of individuals.
"For instance when the entire NLC presidency is picked, Takor Ivor, the National Treasurer will assume position. Besides at the state and regional levels a detailed structure is being worked out with the civil society organisations.
"So with or without Oshiomhole, you must continue with the battle so that nobody benefits from the arrest of anybody and scuttle our actions," he added.
Oshiomhole said that there was no going back on the strike date unless the Federal Government not only reverted to the old pump prices of petroluem products but also obliged the Nigerian people of their demands.
"By October 11, we shall ask the question who owns the land. Our yesterday has been wasted, we can not afford to waste our tomorrow. We must stand on the side of truth and justice. This is not a time to lament"
He urged the workers not to be worried by the attempts to weaken NLC through the labour bill and the Justice Roseline Ukeje's ruling affirming that "the NLC will outlive them."
The executive in a bill before the National Assembly seeks to create more labour centres and criminalise strike. The bill which has been passed by the Senate is before a committee of the House of Representatives.
Justice Ukeje of the Federal High Court, Abuja last week ruled that the NLC cannot go on strike on non employment related issues. She also ruled that the office of NLC presidency does not exist in law.
Reflecting on the running of the economy, Oshiomhole said that government is not only preaching what it does not practise but is involved in double standard and hypocrisy. He urged all the reprersentatives of the workers to carry the messages back to their different stations. "You must begin the mobilisation as soon as you get to your station. October 11 is real, we must not waste this chance."
He later told THISDAY that the mobilisation processs will take place in various parts of the country at different levels, affirming that the workers will put in everything to rejct the increase.
Many other speakers including the general secretaries of Local Government Union, Non Academic Staff Union, Chemical Union president among others who spoke at the gathering pledged their loyalty to NLC leadership and promised to mobilise their members.
Also, in a statement issued yesterday by NLC' Head of Information, Mr. Owei Lakemfa, the Congress decried the ongoing alleged official campaign of mis-information, dis-information, and inelegant propaganda over the issues of strikes, fuel price increase, and the proscription of the office of the Congress's President.
"One, strikes are not banned. The first piece of dis-information is that following the anti-labour executive bill, strikes have been banned in the country. This is false.
"First is that a bill is not a law. Secondly, the Senate expressly expunged the proposed ban on strikes from the bill it passed. Thirdly, the House of Representatives is yet to pass the bill, and we do not have any doubt whatsoever, that the House, like the Senate, will not pass a bill banning strikes", Lakemfa stated.
To him, "the National Assembly is quite aware that the right to work or refuse to work for any reason, is fundamental and cannot be legislated upon. Also, the constitution expressly bans forced labour."
On the office of the NLC President, Lakemfa said there was no proscription. "A piece of information has been sent out that Justice Roseline Ukeje (Chief Judge of Federal High Court) has proscribed the office of the NLC President. This is a deliberate mis- reading of the judgment", he said.
"The judge on page 28 of her judgment examined a matter which none of the parties had canvassed before her thus, 'Mr. Oshiomole (the NLC President) can only be sued in his capacity as a natural person, a Nigerian citizen. He must therefore act strictly as an official of the Nigerian Central Labour Organisation.' This by any stretch of imagination does not translate to a ban of the office of the NLC President's office. In any case, it was Federal Government that sued the NLC President, he did not sue himself. So the office of the NLC President is intact and only the NLC can decide the nomenclature of her leader", Lakemfa added.
At the meeting between the Police IG and other police chiefs, which took place at the Police Headquarters, sources disclosed to THISDAY that the issue of how to contain the proposed Labour-led strike, topped the parley.
In attendance were the Deputy Inspector Generals of Police (DIGs), Assistant Inspector Generals of Police (AIGs) as well as all the Police Commissioners of all the 36 states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja.
However, briefing newsmen before the close door meeting, Balogun directed the police chiefs to find ways of putting a stop to the orgy of police killings, particularly by armed robbers.
"I must say we are losing men on daily basis and this must stop. We must be on the alert all the time. This can be done by letting every police man know that his security must be top most on his mind. They have to develop the confidence to always fight back.
"If a police man knows that his own security is more paramount, he must take proactive steps to secure himself. The killing at Edo/Delta/Borno axis must be checked," Balogun implored the officers.
However, speaking on why the Federal Government was not in dialogue with the NLC, the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Lawal, said that "as far as we (government) are concerned, we believe in the rule of law and if you recall during the last aborted strike, the government made it clear that every decision by the court of law is what we abide by."
Hassan who spoke with State House correspondents yesterday shortly after the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting, said "the NLC has abandoned the mandate given by the majority of workers to it and that is to go and look after their welfare in so many ways. Now they have abandoned this mandate while attacking every conceivable policy of government. So, I can tell you they have derailed and anybody that overshoots the runway is bound to crashland."
He emphasised that the Federal Government believes in the rule of law and we will abide by the judgement of the court, adding, "the NLC has derailed. If they say that they believe in the rule of law and they have consistently said that, now that there is a judgement and the judgement is very clear, they should abide. It is the same NLC that has called a meeting and has attacked all those things that the court has said it should not do."
"In the same breadth, it is the same NLC that has gone out to appeal against the judgement. So, it is a bundle of contradiction as far as we are concerned. A lot of Nigerians are wondering because you have to respect a court decision before you can appeal against it," Lawal added.
The minister said that "as I am speaking to you now, there is a subsisting judgement by a court of competent jurisdiction and the content of that judgement is very well known to you and to the labour movement.
"If the labour movement decides to violate that judgement by way of contempt of court, that would be up to them. The consequences of contempt of court are so clear and open to everybody. So, what I am telling you is that we believe in the rule of law and we will abide by the judgement of the court."
Meanwhile, the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Audu Ogbeh, reviewed the planned protests of NLC against the fuel price hike and said that deregulation has put Nigeria in a dilemma.
The PDP Chairman also said that no nation could afford to leave its economy to the dictates of market forces, as to do that will "breed anger and hatred in the country."
Ogbeh, who spoke yesterday when he, and the National Working Committee (NWC) of the ruling PDP met with Ambassadors and High Commissioners in the country lamented: "We have been advised to deregulate, but we believe that the process of deregulation has severe consequences on the lives of our people.
"We are currently witnessing strike threats by the Labour. This is the dilemma which we face, not only in Nigeria, but in many developing countries."
Ogbeh contended that although "market forces have its advantages," it would be foolhardy for any country to leave its economy to market forces.
He continued: "...we are in this dilemma, we have the international agencies saying deregulate. As a political group, we are aware that the issue is to surrender your country to the fierce forces of the market; this may cause many hardships to the people, so we have to balance the forces. And this is why, PDP as a political party we keep expressing concern."
He observed that the "biggest injustice to humanity is hunger and poverty in the land."
Ogbeh said that the greatest challenge facing the nation is the management of the economy.
The PDP Chairman, however, said plans are afoot to engage the NLC in a dialogue in order to avert the impending strike.
"We are planning ways of engaging the NLC in a dialogue. We are working at it. The machinery for dialogue has been put in place," Ogbeh told newsmen after the meeting with the envoys.
|
