Ajaero explodes, says NLC suspends nationwide protest over threats and intimidation from Tinubu’s government

Joe Ajaero, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) national chairman, accused the federal government under President Bola Ahmed Tinbuu of threatening and intimidating the union’s leadership over the suspended protest.

The NLC had declared a two-day nationwide mass protest for February 27 and 28, 2024, over the economic hardship being faced by Nigerians since the removal of subsidy on petrol in May 2023.

On Tuesday morning, the protesters began their marches from the Labour House in Abuja and the Ikeja under-bridge in Lagos, while chanting solidarity songs and slogans.

Similar rallies were staged in state capitals across the country.

In a communiqué issued at the end of the National Executive Council meeting and signed by its President, Joe Ajaero and General Secretary, Ismail Bello, on Tuesday, the NLC suspended the nationwide planned protest slated for Wednesday.

The NLC believed that the message from the protests was effectively communicated to the government.

The union listed fresh demands and issued a 14-day ultimatum to the Bola Tinubu-led government over the increasing economic hardship in the country.

But addressing journalists in Abuja on Thursday, Ajaero accused the government of plotting to undermine the union’s effort through divide-and-rule tactics, saying the two-day protest was called off because of threats and intimidation.

Ajaero further expressed concern that its headquarters as well as state offices nationwide had been militarised by the federal government, insisting members of the congress won’t be cowed by any threat.

Ajaero noted that Labour would no longer honour any invitation from the federal government to attend any night meeting, ahead of any of its declared nationwide mass actions, saying it was a strategy to hoodwink them.

He maintained that the leadership of NLC would only attend meetings with the government officials when actions had not been declared.

He said: “Each time they invite us for meetings, we will attend and listen to them because if we don’t attend, they will blackmail us. You are aware that they held a meeting with us till late on Sunday. While that meeting was on, they wrote letters to all the unions to undermine us.

“You’re meeting with the leadership of the NLC, and you’re still inviting every union in the country to undermine us. Even at that meeting, where I was talking, they wanted two of my deputies to be talking, so that we don’t have leaders, but we survived all that.

“There is nothing on earth they have not done to subvert the NLC. Nothing! And we’re still waxing stronger. So, if they invite us for a meeting, we will still go and listen because we have our views, we have our positions, and we will still gently present our positions. We won’t say we’re not going except when we realise that…”

He further said; “Henceforth, the NLC will no longer be comfortable attending meetings on the eve of any action. Never again! It was a waste of time, waste of energy and nothing comes from such meetings.

“It was to delay us, to demobilise us, and to make people have the impression that we went there to discuss other issues, apart from the issues on ground. This is our new resolve.

“You (FG) can no longer call us for a meeting when we have action tomorrow or next tomorrow, and you delay us till 11pm, 12am in the night, so that we won’t come out to mobilise for action. Such a strategy is obsolete. I think they should adopt new strategies.”

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