By Orkula Shaagee, Abuja with Agency reports

Organised Labour has suspended its planned nationwide industrial action for two weeks over the recent hike in electricity tariff and fuel pump price in the country.

Sen.  Christ Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment said this while reading a joint communique on the resolution of the Trade Dispute between the Federal Government and the organised Labour on Monday in Abuja.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) had threatened to embark on industrial action over the Federal Government’s refusal to reverse the hike in electricity tariff and fuel pump price on Monday, Sept.

The removal of the subsidy had led to an increase in electricity tariff from about N30.23 to about N62.33 per kwh, while the price of petrol was increased from about N145 to about N161 per litre.

Ngige said the resolution reached with the organised labour was an outcome of a fruitful deliberation.

According to him, on the issue of electricity tariff reforms, the parties agreed to set up a Technical Committee comprising Ministries, Departments, Agencies, NLC and TUC, which will work for a duration of two weeks effective from Monday, Sept. 28.

“The committee is to examine the justifications for the new policy in view of the need for the validation of the basis for the new cost reflective tariff.

“The technical committee membership included Mr Festus Keyamo, Minister of State Labour and Employment, as chairman, Mr Godwin Jedy-Agba, Minister of State Power, Mr James Momoh, Chairman National Electricity Regulatory Commission,

“Others were Mr Ahmad Rufai Zakari, SA to Mr President on Infrastructure, Dr Onoho’Omhen Ebhohimhen, Member, NLC, Mr Joe Ajaero NLC, Mr Chris Okonkwo, TUC and a representative of DISCOS.”

The minister said the committee should also look at the different Electricity Distribution Company (DISCOs) and their different electricity tariff ‘vis-à-vis NERC’s order and mandate.

Ngige, on the issue of the downstream sector deregulation, said all parties agreed on the need to expand the local refining capacity of the nation to reduce the over dependency on importation of petroleum products

He said NNPC was directed to expedite the rehabilitation of the nation’s four refineries located in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna and to achieve 50 per cent completion for Port Harcourt by December 2021, while timelines and delivery for Warri and Kaduna will be established by the inclusive Steering Committee.

According  to him,  the national leadership of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association (PENGASSAN) will be integrated into the Steering Committee already established by the Corporation.

“The Federal Government and its agencies are to ensure delivery of one million CNG/LPG AutoGas conversion kits, storage skids and dispensing units under the Nigeria Gas Expansion Programme by December 2021 to enable delivery of cheaper transportation and power fuel.

“A Governance Structure that will include representatives of organised Labour shall be established for timely delivery,” he said.

Ngige also said on the issue of general intervention that the government will facilitate the removal of tax on minimum wage as a way of cushioning the impacts of the policy on the lowest vulnerable.

He said the Federal Government would give the labour unions 133 CNG/LPG driven mass transit buses immediately and ‘provide to the major cities across the Country on a scale up basis, thereafter to all States and Local Governments before December 2021.’

He said 10 per cent of the ongoing Ministry of Housing and Finance housing initiative would be allocated to Nigerian workers under the NLC and TUC.

According to him, a specific amount is to be unveiled by the Federal Government in two weeks’ time,  which will be isolated from the Economic Sustainability Programme Intervention Fund that can be accessed by Nigerian Workers with subsequent provision for 240,000 under the auspices of NLC and TUC.

“This is for participation in agricultural ventures through the CBN and the Ministry of Agriculture. The timeline will be fixed at the next meeting,” he said.

In his remark, Mr Ayuba Wabba, NLC President said that both the government and organised labour have looked into the issue of fuel price hike and what was needed to be put in place in order to address the issue of the increase.

“We have discussed the state of our refineries and how to achieve sustainable refineries.

“We have also looked at the issue of the tariff hike and other challenges.

“We agreed to suspend the strike, and we agreed to also put a committee in place to work out lasting solution in addressing these challenges, including the issue of metering and importantly also is to bring about the issue of efficiency.

“We also reviewed the process of privatisation and other issues such as clear palliatives that were needed to be extended to our members and Nigerians to cushion the effect of these policies,” he said.

Wabba, therefore, called for social dialogue as a way of addressing issues of industrial relations, socio-economic issues and also issues of development.

According to him, the labour hopes that the communique will be implemented, and therefore, the decision of the organised labour as represented here is to suspend the action.

“We are going to convey our Central Working Committee meeting to present the communique to them,” he said.

Also, Mr Quadiri Olaleye, TUC president noted that based on the agreement signed between the government and the labour, the planned industrial action would be suspended for two weeks.

He added that the planned industrial action was called to draw the attention of the government to certain issues.(NAN)

House of Representatives’ Intervention

As part of efforts to get the labour unions suspend the scheduled strike, the House of Representatives said it offered organised labour the possibility of accommodating some palliatives in 2021 budget.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, before the meeting with labour leaders yesterday in Abuja, said that the budget would soon be presented to the National Assembly, stressing that some palliatives were being considered to cushion the effects of an increase in electricity tariff and fuel price hike.

The palliatives, according to the Speaker, include distribution of food items, reduction of taxes on minimum wage, and payment of some special allowances.

Others are involvement in the ownership of housing programmes through mortgage and distribution of special buses to public institutions that run on autogas.

Gbajabiamila said that the palliatives would go a long way to assuage the suffering of Nigerians.

He said the lawmakers would also make provision in the budget to tackle the eight million deficits of meters to enable Nigerians to access them.

Gbajabiamila, who described estimated billing as a scam, said: “I have never heard it anywhere in the world, so if we may have to provide for the deficit, we will have to do that.”

He appealed to labour not to proceed on strike, saying embarking on industrial action at this critical time would not augur well for the citizenry.

“You know, you cannot go on strike at this time, if you go on strike, the people you think you are protecting will be at the receiving end, we share your philosophy regarding workers’ rights.

 “We know what Nigerians are going through, our position on electricity billing is obvious, the only thing now is to continue to talk, I am concerned about the people out there.

“Shutting down the markets, banks and other places of work is my worry, I am concerned about the people” he said.

Gbajabiamila said that there was the need for every Nigerian to be properly metered in order to capture the true cost, adding that the lawmakers would consider metering in the 2021 budget.

NLC President,  Ayuba Wabba, said that the increase in electricity tariff and hike in fuel price had eroded the purchasing power of Nigerian workers.

He said the initial plan was that there would not be an increase in electricity tariff until meters were provided for Nigerians. Wabba commended the speaker for the intervention, adding that he had consistently represented the interest of Nigerians.

The NLC president said there was a valid court judgment nullifying the electricity tariff, adding that the judgment of the National Industrial Court asking NLC to stop its planned strike could not be sustained. Wabba insisted that the NLC would go ahead with the strike if its demands were not met by the Federal Government before the expiration of the ultimatum.

Recall that government representatives and the organized labour met on Thursday, but the meeting ended without resolving the contentious issues.

Consequently, it was adjourned for tomorrow, September 28, the commencement day of the strike.

The organised labour had accused the government of insensitivity over the implementation of the deregulation policy which led in the increase of the pump price of petrol as well as the recent hike in electricity tariff.

NLC President said the increase in electricity tariff and hike in fuel price had eroded the purchasing power of ordinary Nigerian workers.

The labour leader noted that the initial plan was to ensure that there was no increment in electricity tariff until meters were provided for Nigerians.

He added that there was a valid court judgment nullifying the electricity tariff, stressing that the National Industrial Court judgement, asking NLC to stop its planned strike could not be sustained.

On his part, TUC leaders, Olaleye said: “We have suggested the need for the government to diversify the economy. The need for government to declare a state of emergency in agriculture because the food and raw materials we use in this country are imported, and there is need for government to diversify the economy.

 “If it is diversified as this government promised in 2015 by now we will not have an issue of electricity tariff or issue of PMP price increase because people will have enough disposable income in their account to be able to patrionise all these essential services but the issue is that the economy is not diversified and everybody’s attention is on crude oil, and most of their friends smile to banks without doing anything.

“As at May 2020 we made an alternative policy on how to run the economy and it was a very comprehensive alternative way to run the government but the government refused and now we are pushed to the wall.

“The only option left for us is to declare strike and mass protest, and it is going to bring solution because what the strike needs to prove to the people that are ruling us is that we are the owners of the country and we are in the majority.” However, he said subsidy is a fraud because it a way to defraud Nigerians for their selfish aims”.

The labour had insisted that the Federal Government should revert to the old prices of petrol and electricity tariff before any meaningful discussion could take place.

While the government made spirited efforts to explain the reason behind its action bearing in mind the effect of the dreaded COVID-19 pandemic on the economy, the organized labour insisted that it was a mark on insensitivity on the part of government to take such decision, especially, “as many people cannot feed themselves this time”.

It was reliably gathered that affiliate unions have mobilized workers to ensure that the strike is effective, but the Federal Government fixed the meeting at the Old Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja to dissuade the labour leaders.