THE Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has suspended the two-day nationwide protest it started on Tuesday, February 27.
The NLC said the second day of the protest, scheduled for Wednesday, February 28, would be used for press conferences across the states.
The group also issued a new 14-day ultimatum to the Federal Government, which expires on March 13, and said all demands made from October 2, 2023, be fully implemented.
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The ICIR reported that the NLC and its affiliates commenced a national protest on Tuesday over the country’s high cost of living and hunger.
However, the group’s leadership, in a press release on Tuesday signed by its president, Joe Ajaero, and general secretary, Ismail Bello, said the government had received a message from the protest.
“The NEC-in-session, therefore, reviewed the execution of the first day of the nationwide protest to assess its effectiveness and take a decision on the further necessary action to guide Congress in its effort at engaging government to protect the people and Nigerian workers from the increasing scourge of hardship.
“To this end, NEC commended Nigerians, all NLC affiliates, state councils, workers and civil society allies across the nation for trooping out in large numbers to peacefully demonstrate their outrage on the hardship imposed by the government and its twin altars – the IMF and the World Bank,” the statement read in part.
The NLC, however, said the nationwide action would continue on Wednesday, February 28, with simultaneous press conferences in all its state councils in the 36 states and its headquarters in Abuja.
The ICIR reported on Tuesday, February 27, that the labour leader, Ajaero, said the nationwide protest was not about the pending minimum wage but ravaging hunger across the nation.
Ajaero stated this at the commencement of the protest on Tuesday in Abuja.
He said the workers had advised the government what to do as a short-term solution to the hardship.
He said there had been hunger in the country before the present administration took over, but it was not as bad as citizens experienced it under the President Bola Tinubu-led government.
He accused the Federal Government of playing politics with issues affecting the vast majority of citizens and diverting money meant for alleviating poverty into private accounts.
He claimed that no state government had paid wage awards. He also blamed food scarcity in the country on insecurity.
He said Nigeria could not attain sufficiency in food supply when farmers could not go to farms due to bandit attacks, stressing that it was the government’s duty to provide security.
A reporter with the ICIR
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