The Trade Union Congress (TUC) Responds to Allegations of Betrayal Regarding Non-Participation in NLC Protest
The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has refuted claims of betrayal leveled against it by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) for declining to join the two-day protest organized by the NLC.
The recent protest by the NLC aimed to address the prevalent hardship in the country and the perceived failure of the Federal Government to engage in negotiations for a new minimum wage.
READ ALSO: TUC Responds to Tinubu: We’re Advocates, Not Politicians; Protest is Essential
In an interview on Channels TV’s Politics Today on Friday, TUC President, Festus Osifo, clarified that the union had never committed to participating in the protest alongside the NLC.
Osifo stated, “I’ll just explain exactly what happened to you. Now, when you say somebody opted out from a process, it means that the person was in before, it means that there was an agreement to do something.”
“When there is an agreement to do something at the last minute, you will not say I am not doing again. That is opting out, then you can use the word sold out. But in this scenario, there wasn’t any agreement to do anything.
“We did not have any conversation; nobody even mentioned it to us that this is the direction to go. That conversation never took place. So as long as that also never took place, we never opt out of anything. If there was an initial agreement that let’s go for a protest, the winner say we are not going for that protest.
“You could call that opt out, you could call that sold out, you could call that anything. But in this scenario, there was no understanding at all. No discussion could have even led to any understanding.”
Meanwhile, Osifo stated that he agrees with the President of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, who expressed that they are not concerned with President Tinubu’s stance but are demanding the implementation of all agreements reached between the labour unions and the Federal Government after the removal of fuel subsidy.
Tinubu, on Thursday in Lagos, asked the labour unions to wait for 2027 if they’re interested in politics, adding that strike actions in his administration’s first nine months is unacceptable.