NLC and TUC in the state instruct employees to strike

Following the declaration of a two-day warning strike by the Nigeria Labour Congress, some state chapters of the organised labour union have expressed their readiness to join the industrial action.

The leadership of the state chapters of the labour unions, in separate interviews with our correspondents, said they have ordered their members to join the warning strike which is scheduled to be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, September 5 and 6, 2023.

Speaking with our correspondent on Sunday, the Chairman, NLC Lagos chapter, Mrs Agnes Sessi, said Lagos NLC would join the nationwide strike.

“We are under the authority of our national leadership and whatever is decided at the national level is binding on us. So, yes, we are joining the strike,” Sessi affirmed.

Abdullahi Jungle, the chairman of the Sokoto State NLC, also revealed to The PUNCH that the state’s union would organize its members to participate in the two-day warning strike.

The council’s members are scheduled to meet on Sunday to discuss the modalities, according to the chairman.

“Yes, we are joining the strike as we are already mobilising our members for the strike.

“We are holding a meeting today on how to go about it, but I can assure you that we will join the strike,” Jungle said.

The NLC chapter in Kano State has declared that it will participate in the planned warning strike and demonstration that the union’s national body has called for.

The National Executive Council meeting in Abuja was where the decision to go on the warning strike was made, according to Kabiru Inuwa, the state NLC chairman, who made the announcement in a phone chat with The PUNCH on Sunday.

“We are going to hold our State Executive Council meeting today (Sunday) around 3pm to finalise the arrangements for the commencement of the warning strike on Tuesday.

“So, we are going to join the strike as directed by the national headquarters of our union because we attended the NEC where the decision was reached,” Inuwa said.

The NLC branch in Ekiti State also announced that its members would participate in the two-day warning strike called by the union’s national leadership.

Kolapo Olatunde, the state chairman, said that if the federal government did not take action to prevent the two-day warning strike, members in Ekiti State will follow suit.

Olatunde stated that members in Ekiti State already had the communication from the national body regarding the issue and that if the necessary wasn’t done by then, members would need to be mobilized.

“There is correspondence towards the decision, there is communique to that effect from the national, that is already with our members. It is a collective decision.”

Similar to this, Ibrahim Fika, the general secretary of the NLC in Gombe State, stated that they had been informed of the strike and will be participating.

In an interview with our correspondent on Saturday, Fika made this revelation.

He claims that the state’s union won’t begin mobilizing until Monday following its State Executive Council meeting.

He said, “This is national. Even if we don’t mobilise, the industrial union headquarters will mobilise them. But for us in Gombe State, we will possibly have our State Executive meeting on Monday because we just returned from Abuja on Friday and today is the weekend.

“I’m very sure the headquarters will communicate to them but nevertheless, we will have our SEC meeting on Monday so that immediately, which is the next day, we will go for action,” Fika added.

The Niger State chapter of the NLC said had gone into a crucial meeting with all its affiliate bodies.