Osamagbe Imadiyi
In order to prevent the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and its civil society allies from protesting the 50% increase in telecommunications tariffs across the country tomorrow, the Federal Government has called a meeting of labour leaders today.
The NLC’s opposition to the N8 billion government budgetary allocation for electricity bill sensitization—which the labor movement characterized as the pinnacle of wastefulness, corruption, and profligacy—was also discussed at the meeting, it was learned.
According to a source from the meeting’s host, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, or SGF, the meeting was set to start at 5:00 p.m. According to the source, the purpose of the meeting was to “discuss issues of national interest as they affect Nigerian workers.”
The source claims that NLC, its allies, and others are strongly opposed to the federal government’s approved increases in telecommunications tariffs, and that the purpose of the interministerial meeting with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, or SGF, is to address the concerns raised by NLC. Workers are already being urged by NLC to stage a large-scale demonstration against the approved 50% tariff hike tomorrow, February 4.
“The proposed N8 billion budgetary allocation in 2025 for the federal government’s electricity bill sensitization campaign will also be discussed at the meeting. “The meeting had to be scheduled for 5 p.m. following the FEC meeting because the government had already scheduled other meetings for Monday,” the source added.
According to NLC sources, the organization’s leaders would attend the meeting and listen to the government’s viewpoint, but they emphasized that “there is no way we will accept the 50% telecommunications tariffs hike.”
In order to guarantee complete and complete mobilization of employees and allies for the protest against the proposed 50% increase in telecommunications tariffs, NLC wrote to its affiliate unions and state councils on Thursday.
NLC General Secretary Emma Ugboaja urged the affiliate unions and state councils to mobilize other Nigerians in order to send a serious message to the government in a separate letter dated January 30.
