The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) is set to commence a 2-day nationwide protest on Tuesday, July 26, 2022 over the prolonged shut down of public Universities in the country.
The NLC President, Ayuba Wabba made this known in an interview with Journalists on the sideline of the ongoing 18th NLC Rain School in Uyo, the Akwa-Ibom State capital.
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He said the protest became necessary after other interventions by the leadership of the NLC to the government to end the now over five months industrial action by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and other unions in the universities failed.
“The protest happening tomorrow is not a solidarity protest but a protest of NLC against government actions that led to our universities being shut down and our kids staying at home instead of going to school.
“All the unions directly involved in the strike are NLC affiliates and their members are part of NLC.”
NLC has also threatened to embark on a three-day warning strike if the protest fails to yield the expected result.
“We have taken three levels of decision. First is the protest which is going to be national. After the protest, a three days national warning strike will kick in, and if they fail to resolve the issues and bring back our kids to school, we go on an indefinite strike.
“That is the decision of our National Executive Council, and what will be helpful for them is to check the timeline we have given for them to resolve the issues. We are optimistic that they will be willing this time because we are also willing to get our children back to school,” Wabba said.
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On the purchasing power of Nigerians in view of the exchange rate, the NLC President said he never knew that the exchange rate has moved within a week from N630 to N670 describing the development as very frightening saying it erodes the purchasing power of workers.
“Importantly is the issue of our children that are out of school for five months. Basically, it also requires a political decision for the issue to be sorted out. What is even more worrisome is the fact that they keep posting the graduation of their children in universities outside the country on social media and then the universities where the children of the working class study are closed down.
“I was told today that we have 3 sets of students that ought to be in the university but unfortunately they have not even sorted out their admission challenges. So it really a very frightening future for Nigerians, particularly the youths.”
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The NLC President who is also the President of the International Trade Union Confederation ITUC noted that most of the political elites benefited from free education in Nigeria and wondered reasons for the delay in fixing the nation’s public education sector.
PIAK
