In an apparent bid to get Labour to call off the indefinite strike called by the Nigerian Labour Congress NLC, President Muhammadu Buhari, has appealed to Labour for understanding and shelve the strike.
The President who made the appeal when he received members of the Association of Retired Career Ambassadors of Nigeria (ARCAN) led by Oladapo Fafowora, urged labour to consider what the present administration inherited and what it is doing with the few resources available
The Monday appeal which is the first President Buhari will comment Publicly on the issue since the commencement of the recent debate for minimum wage increase, is coming on the heels of the Tuesday deadline for the commencement of indefinite strike called by Labour to press home demands for a new Minimum wage.
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A statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said the President had told the retired Ambassadors that Nigerians will never forget the ‘‘lost opportunity between 1999 and 2015,’’ when the nation had huge resources at its disposal.
According to the statement, “President Buhari appealed to the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to consider what this government inherited and the more it is doing with fewer resources in putting the economy right”
The President also reassured Nigerians that his administration will sustain massive investments to upgrade and develop the country’s transport and power infrastructure.
“There is no part of the country I haven’t been to, having attempted to be President four times.
”I know the condition of our roads. The rails were literally killed, there was no power despite the admittance of some previous leadership that they spent $16 billion on the sector.
”Today, we are getting our priorities right and we believe that of the three fundamental issues we campaigned on – security, the economy and fighting corruption-, we have remained very relevant and Nigerians believe we have achieved something,”
President Buhari also used the occasion to appreciate the People’s Republic of China for financing some of the rail and power projects in the country through concessionary loans.
”I will do my best to see that where there are possibilities of making a quick improvement on infrastructure, we will do it,” he said.
The President took note of some concerns raised by the retired Ambassadors including an appeal for the adjustment of their pension entitlements, retention of diplomatic passport for retired career ambassadors, allocation of land for ARCAN headquarters in Abuja and adequate funding of the Foreign Affairs ministry, among others.
Tony Ailemen, Abuja.
