September 30, (THEWILL) – Leaders of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and their Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) counterparts, on Friday, shunned a meeting called by the Federal Government, over the planned nationwide strike from October 3.
Labour Unions had at a joint press conference held in Abuja, on Tuesday, declared an indefinite nationwide strike from October 3, following the Federal Government’s failure to address the hardship inflicted on Nigerians by the removal of fuel subsidy.
THEWILL reports that the Federal Government, in a last minute effort to avert the planned strike by the Unions, had summoned an emergency meeting for Friday evening.
However, in a response to the invitation, the Unions in a joint letter signed by Emmanuel Ugboaja, NLC’s General Secretary and Nuhu Toro, TUC’s Secretary General, said the invitation came late, as they had scheduled engagements outside Abuja, the federal capital. Labour, however, requested for a new date next week.
The letter reads: “We extend our warm regards to you and the entire team at your Ministry.
“We wish to express our sincere regrets for our inability to attend the proposed meeting between us and the Federal Government, scheduled for today the 29th Day of September due to already scheduled engagements our officials have outside Abuja.
“Regrettably, the short notice provided for this meeting has posed significant logistical challenges for the majority of our leadership, rendering their participation unfeasible at this time.
“In light of this, and in the interest of ensuring that any discussions held are representative of the NLC’s and TUC’s collective stance, we find it imperative to request the rescheduling of the meeting.
“We trust that this request for a rescheduled meeting will be taken into consideration, and we look forward to your understanding in this matter.”
