NLC threatens strike over Petrol Price increase

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has threatened to down tools over the increase in the price of petrol by the federal government.

Comrade Ayuba Wabba, President of NLC, made this known on Wednesday to reporters while reacting to the fuel price increase announced by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Wabba said the labour union has rejected the hike in petrol price from N138 to N151.56 per litre, threatening that it would no longer guarantee industrial peace. He added that an emergency meeting of its organs will be called to deliberate on the next line of actions to take,

He said: “In fact, Nigerians and even NLC we are shocked, and this increase is coming at a time when many Nigerians are passing through very peculiar and precarious times.

“It is like Nigerians are being taken for a ride; the increase in price of petrol is like adding salt to injury. “The increase in price of petrol has happened now more than three times in three months; only yesterday they hiked the tariffs of electricity. And to compound it, they also reduced the interest rate of savings, which affects mostly the poor and the vulnerable.

“While rejecting this with the strongest terms, I think Nigerian government is taking Nigerians for granted.

“At the end of the day, Nigerians are becoming poorer and poorer; in fact, many people are already on the edge. Many workers are already on the edge.

“Certainly, we cannot guarantee industrial peace and harmony, and we will have to call our organs and we will have to also react but we reject it in its entirety,” he explained.

The NLC president said that federal government has failed Nigerians with its inhumane actions coupled with the fact the country is jut recovering from the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.