Subsidy: FG meets again with TUC, and agrees to look into the practicability of Labour’s demands
The Federal Government has said it will look at the practicability of the demands of Organised Labour over the removal of the subsidy on petrol price and the hike in the prices of the product.
Dele Alake, Spokesperson for the Federal Government, disclosed this after a government delegation met with a team from the Trade Union Congress on Sunday at the State House, Abuja, over the removal of fuel subsidy.
Alake said the government is also to set up a tripartite committee to include states and organised labour and the private sector to study the dynamics of the minimum wage augmentation to reach an amicable conclusion.
He revealed that the government is considering tax holidays for workers. He said there is no disagreement with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) over their demand for a review of the minimum wage or a return to the status quo.
He said the FG representatives will meet with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to crystallize decisions on the demands.
He added that the absence of the NLC does not translate to an isolation of the group in the discussion but that the FG is making efforts to reach them as the parties agreed to reconvene on Tuesday 24 hours before a scheduled strike by the NLC.
Festus Osifo, the President of the TUC, asked the Federal Government, in the interest of social dialogue, revert the price of fuel while discussions continue.
He said the union is hopeful as the Federal Government promised to look into their demands, the top of which is a review of the current minimum wage among others.
The Sunday meeting was a follow-up to Wednesday’s meeting with the organized labour which ended in
a deadlock. At today’s meeting, the federal government’s team is led by the Secretary to the \
Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume. Others are the Governor of the Central
Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefie; former Governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole; and
the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele
Kyari.
Also in the meeting are the Executive Secretary of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC), Zacch Adedeji; Executive Vice President, Downstream, of the NNPCL, Yemi Adetunji; former Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Dele Alake; Hon James Faleke, among others.
The TUC has seven members represented at the meeting led by their President, Mr Festus Osifo.
