Members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on Wednesday commenced nationwide protests against petrol subsidy removal.
Joe Ajaero, President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), disclosed this on at Unity Fountain, Abuja, where workers gathered to hit the streets.
He said there are some hindrances in the commencement of the protest in some states, even as it had started in majority of the states.
Said he: “Protests have taken off in all states baring some hindrances in some places. We are aware of the Police efforts to stop the process in some areas.
“To be candid with you, nothing is stopping the protest. Based on responses from state governments, it is equally our determination whether the protest will be for today, tomorrow or next, not by using force to stop the people from expressing their views. We are here for the protest, to make a statement to Nigerians”.
Last Wednesday, the organised labour issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Federal Government to reverse all “anti-poor” and “insensitive” policies, just as it announced that a nationwide protest would commence on August 2 to press for a reversal of fuel price increments and other policies by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government.
As of the time of filing this report, workers had gathered for protests at Unity Fountain Abuja, Ogun and Kano states.
In Lagos, the protesters converged on the Ikeja under-bridge.
The Union also called on civil society organisations (CSOs) and its councils across the states to join in the August 2 nationwide rally to protest the soaring cost of living in the country.
Efforts by the Federal Government to halt the planned strike and protest failed.
During his inaugural address on May 29, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced that the petrol subsidy regime was over.
The pronouncement immediately led to a hike in the pump price of petrol, a quadrupling of transportation costs in certain areas, and ballooning inflation across several market segments.
Tinubu, in a nationwide broadcast on Monday, reeled out palliatives that would cushion the impact of the petrol subsidy removal on the masses.
