FG praises unions for suspending strike – The Sun Nigeria

From Bimbola OyesolaGeneva, Switzerland

Nigeria’s The government has commended the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) for not resuming their strike after the five-day working ultimatum expired yesterday.

Speaking to journalists after the presentation of Nigeria’s report to the International Labour Organization (ILO) at the International Labour Conference (ILC) in Geneva, Switzerland, Labour and Employment Minister Nkeiruka Onyejeocha said yesterday that the non-resumption of the relaxed strike was a sign of patriotism among the workers.

“I commend them for their patriotism and for knowing that a strike is not an option because there are people who have nothing to eat until they go out every day. They had to come to the secretariat to sell bananas. This is how they can feed their children and earn money to support themselves. So if you close the office, how are they going to survive?”

She said that the workers should be commended for not resuming the strike and that they continue to hope for the president’s intervention.

“Everyone praises them for doing the right thing. If you look at the speeches of all the speakers here, they all talked about wanting to have a good relationship with the government. All countries talk about a good working environment, but you can’t achieve all that by going on strike.”

The Labour Minister lamented the challenges Nigerians face during every strike. “When there is a strike, people die. Cutting off the electricity grid would mean the death of many people who would have to suffer from a lack of oxygen in hospitals.”

“Even if you call a strike, there are areas that should be considered essential services and the strike should not affect those. You cannot close hospitals or take away their lights because some people need energy to breathe.”

Onyejeocha, however, expressed reservations about the people’s reaction to the workers’ failure to continue the strike after the ultimatum expired.

She stressed that in negotiations, neither party is expected to back down or say things that could harm the other party.

“You have to be consistent and respectful to the other party when making your point,” she said.

She said the government would continue to view unions as an important ally, adding that after taking office she had visited union leadership to see how cooperation between the two could be possible.

“We are one and the same Nigeria and we must be in the same boat. As the President said, he is the driver and we are the conductors while all Nigerians are the passengers,” she said.

At the same time, she assured that Nigeria would further intensify its measures to eradicate child labour.

“I don’t know if you know that the president has appointed a whole committee to deal with the ‘almajiris’. He is also revising the Universal Basic Education (UBE). And the government is pursuing a policy that includes everyone, including minors. It is getting them back to school whether they have money or not, and of course, it is providing free primary education.”

Onyejeocha said the federal government had also withdrawn student loans, which had never been done before. “The government is doing a lot and I believe that tomorrow, as it is Child Labour Day, we will celebrate with a lot of hope for vulnerable children.”

According to the minister, the federal government has also initiated measures to punish people, including parents of children, who engage in child labor.

“It’s your child, but the government says you don’t have to expose your children to this. It’s bad for the child’s future, for the government and even for their parents. What are you doing with these children? They end up becoming all sorts of things that society doesn’t want them to be,” she stressed.