NLC and TUC suspend protest against police blockade in front of Rivers LG secretariats

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in Rivers State have suspended their planned protests against the ongoing police blockade in front of the secretariats of local government authorities.

This decision comes against the backdrop of reports indicating a potential for violence emanating from certain individuals posing as union members.

During a joint press conference in Port Harcourt on Sunday, NLC chairman Alex Agwanwor called on the police to arrest anyone attempting to protest on behalf of the unions on Monday.

He advised members of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), who had originally proposed the protest, to await further instructions from the employment offices.

Both NLC chairman Alex Agwanwor and his TUC colleague Ikechukwu Onyefuru rejected allegations by former local government chairmen that state union leaders were biased.

On Friday, the unions had demanded that the police clear the local secretariats they had taken over.

Three main issues were discussed at Friday’s meeting: the formation and appointment of interim committees in the 23 local government areas, the call by the All Progressives Congress (APC) for a state of emergency in the state and the police takeover of council secretariats.

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While appreciating the police’s efforts to maintain peace, the NLC boss argued that denying workers access to their offices was a violation of their rights.

He called on the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to instruct the Commissioner of Police in Rivers State to allow the officers access to their offices to enable them to discharge their duties.

The unions threatened that they would mobilize their members to reclaim their offices if their demands were ignored.