• Tuesday, April 30, 2024
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NLC tasks FG on industrialization, sustainable tax justice, corruption campaign

NLC

The leadership of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on Monday stressed the need to roll out action plans toward removing all barriers impeding the country’s industrialization, growth and productivity.

Ayuba Wabba, NLC President who gave the charge via a statement titled: ‘Our commitment to worker issues and good governance are inviolable’, issued to commemorate 2019 New Year, harped on the need to sustain the campaign for tax justice and illicit financial flows.

He also reiterated the need for President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration to ensure that the recovered loots are invested transparently for the benefit of all Nigerians.

“We will work assiduously to promote and advocate for the removal of all barriers to industrialization, growth and productivity. We should be able to build a country where we produce what we consume.

“We cannot continue to export precious jobs away to other countries through successive poor policy choices of government and expect to change our unfortunate status as the poverty capital of the world.”

Wabba who described year 2018 as most traumatic for Nigerian workers, especially given the failure of government to enact and implement the new national minimum wage of N30,000, urged Federal Government to take necessary steps to avert another industrial action.

“It is unfortunate that the Federal Government is yet to transmit to the National Assembly an Executive bill for the enactment of N30,000 as the new national minimum wage. Government’s dilly-dallying on the issue has strained Government -Labour relations with a potential for a major national strike which could just be days away.

“Accordingly, we would use this opportunity to appeal to the Government to do the needful by urgently transmitting the bill on the new national minimum
wage to the National Assembly.

“We also would like to use this same opportunity to urge workers to fully mobilize for a prolonged national strike and enforce their right. This strike action becomes the inevitable last option for us and we crave the understanding and support of all Nigerians and businesses.

“We would want to assure workers that their labour, patience and diligence will not be in vain and that this leadership remains committed to giving all that it takes to ensure that they get just and fair wages due to them in a decent work environment appropriate to their well-being.

“This leadership is similarly committed to ensuring there is social protection for workers. The new year presents great opportunities for workers, pensioners, civil society allies and their friends and families to put their numbers to good use by voting out not on the basis of tribe or religion but purely policy any candidate who cannot serve their interest.”

While reacting to the ongoing campaign against selective enforcement of “No work… No pay” policy of government, Wabba warned against victimisation of workers just as he tasked government at all levels to respect collective bargain agreement in order to avoid unrest in workplace.

“In 2018, government at different levels in Nigeria tried to use the “No work… No pay” to hound and victimize workers. This policy actually arises from clear violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement by the same
government that seeks to use the policy against workers. The fact is that the obnoxious policy of “No Work… No Pay” is derived from Decree 54 of1977 which even military regimes that promulgated it refrained from deploying against workers. It is unfortunate that such cruel policy is being used against workers by a democratic government.

“There is no place in modern industrial relations for workers to be owed arrears of salaries. A case in hand is the recent shutdown of the government of the United States owing to disagreements between the Executive and the Legislative arms of government over budget issues. Most workers whose salaries were affected by the budget impasse were asked to proceed on leave until government is able to pay their salaries.

“In worker-sensitive climes even our West African neighbours, it is unthinkable that workers would go home in a month without their salaries.

“We have tolerated this evil culture of prolonged salary indebtedness for a long time and government has taken advantage of our patience to extend the frontiers of this impunity to the policy dump site of “No Work… No Pay”.

“The Nigeria Labour Congress will continue to resist such unjust, draconian and insensitive policy and insist that workers’ salaries, pension and gratuity
must be paid as when due.

“In furtherance to this, the Nigeria Labour Congress will intensify the struggle for regular, predictable and appropriate payment of salaries, pension and gratuity. This struggle will continue to be our topmost priority.

“In 2018 and the years preceding it, we demonstrated our commitment in this regard with rallies in defaulting states. We also demanded the probe of Governors of such states. We went further to call on the Federal Government to make subsequent release of further bail-out funds or Paris Club refund contingent on clear evidence of judicious use (for payment of salaries, pensions and gratuities) of previous releases. We will continue to insist on accountability.”

On the forthcoming general elections, Wabba stressed the need for the present administration to consolidate on the Democratic gains by insisting on good governance and free, fair, credible cum transparent elections.

“The Nigeria Labour Congress will continue to insist that our elections are clean. Our focus is particularly trained on the 2019 general election. The Nigeria Labour Congress will continue to demand that both the election umpire and political actors play to the rules of the game by shunning violence, election malpractices, vote buying, manipulation of election rules and politics of bitterness.

“We will also deepen our campaign for good governance and fight against corruption in the same manner that we sustained the campaign for tax justice and illicit financial flows. We also demand that the recovered loot be invested transparently for the benefit of all Nigerians,” he urged.

While reacting to the spate of killing of innocent citizens across the country, the NLC President who condemned the barbaric act, called on Federal Government to bring perpetuators of the acts to book.

“We say no to the wanton killings under any guise in our country. We particularly condemn the recent pogrom in Zamfara State which has become a recurring decimal in that state. The mind-boggling repeat episodes of gruesome killings clearly show total collapse of governance in Zamfara State. It also shows a dearth of social justice and the reign of abject poverty.

“We also unequivocally condemn the recent attacks on communities in Borno State by insurgents. This is a serious setback to the fight against terrorism in our dear country. We wish to sympathize with those who
suffered losses in human lives and property. We also share in the pains of thousands of our people who were recently displaced by the wave of Boko Haram attacks in Borno State and indeed other parts of Nigeria.

“We wish to remind our political leaders that the security and welfare of the people must be the chief priority of any government’s policy and programmes.
We also want to reiterate our resolve to continue to push for the prioritization of the welfare, security and wellbeing of all Nigerians especially workers of all category.

“We commend our armed forces for their effort and supreme sacrifice in curtailing the activities of Boko Haram terrorists and other insurgents operating elsewhere in our country.

“Finally, we wish to assure Nigerians, particularly workers, that our resolve and commitment to the noble goals and aspirations of justice, equity, decent wages and accelerated national development remains unshakable and inviolable.”

 

KEHINDE AKINTOLA, Abuja