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…TUC Calls For Massive Food Importation
Tension is fast spreading across the country as the Nigerian Labour Congress has refused all entreaties and said it is going ahead with the Nationwide Protest from February 27, 2024.
Specifically, a protest, the third, since December, 2023, erupted in Lagos on Monday over growing hunger caused by the skyrocketing cost of living whereby the prices of food items and other goods rise daily.
This is despite police warning against the protest in the nation’s economic headquarters.
-The development is amid the sealing of the Lagos office of the NLC by the Police to prevent the planned nationwide protest against hunger and hardship
An activist and national coordinator of the Education Rights Campaign (ERC), Hasssan Taiwo revealed this on Monday morning via his X handle.
He shared the picture of the armed police personnel stationed in front of NLC headquarters in the Yaba area of Lagos State.
He said, “@PoliceNG has sealed off d NLC subheadquarter at Yaba Lagos to prevent d JAF & CORE #EndHungerProtest from taking place. A few comrades are sealed off in the building.
However, the protest, scheduled for February 27 and 28, was announced by the NLC to address economic challenges in the country following a 14-day ultimatum issued to the government.
But the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, (SAN) have urged the NLC to shelve its proposed nationwide protest.
Similarly, the Trade Union Congress has warned that the planned protest being championed by the NLC may lead to anarchy due to the tense nature of the country amid current hardship and prevailing hunger in the land.
The TUC, has rather advised government to embark of massive food importation.
The government warned that the NLC would be in contempt of court if the planned protest was held.
But a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana has written to Fagbemi, noting that NLC would not be in contempt of court over its planned nationwide protest.
In the letter dated February 24, 2024, and addressed to Fagbemi, Falana said, “We submit, without any fear of contradiction, that the proposed public protest of the NLC is not contemptuous of the two ex parte orders of the National Industrial Court. In particular, the issue of contempt does not arise as the NLC has challenged the jurisdiction of the National Industrial Court to entertain the substantive case.”
But, in Lagos video posted on X shows members of a human rights group called “Take It Back Movement” with placards of various inscriptions in the Ojuelegba area of the Lagos metropolis.
Police officers are at the protest to ward off violence, especially by rented thugs who may hijack the grievance to cause mayhem that would attract police brutality.
Lagos Police commissioner, Adegoke Fayoade on Sunday warned against protest in any part of Lagos, the home state of the president.
TUC Calls For Massive Food Importation
The Trade Union Congress (TUC) says it will not participate in the planned protest of NLC on Feb. 27 and Feb. 28.
It has, however, advised the Federal Government to begin massive importation of food items to meet the needs of Nigerians.
Festus Osifo, the President of the TUC, said this at a press conference on Monday.
He said the TUC would rather continue to engage the Federal Government and proffer solutions to some of the challenges facing the country.
Osifo said TUC had outlined a 15-point agenda that the government should consider in other to improve the economic situation of the country.
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He urged the Federal Government to begin massive importation of food to mitigate the soaring prices of food across the country.
Osifo said the current shortage of foods might not be unconnected with the government’s poor patronage of locally made products and services, and lack of capable hands at the helm of affairs.
“Nigerians must live to see tomorrow before we can understand how beautiful a government policy is. The national pride of striving to achieve food sufficiency locally should be temporarily relaxed.
“Governments at all levels should immediately purchase sufficient quantities of food items from different parts of the world and share them with vulnerable Nigerians.
“Importing food abroad at this point will assist to reduce the hyper-inflation of food in the country. FG should allow importation of food items for Nigerian’s consumption within the next two weeks,” he said. (GBN)
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