If the contemptuous court summons is not withdrawn by the Federal Ministry of Justice, the Nigeria Labour Congress has threatened to go on a nationwide strike starting on August 14.
This was stated on Thursday in a statement that NLC President Joe Ajaero and NLC General Secretary Mr. Emmanuel Ugboaja jointly signed.
The communiqué was issued at the end of the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the NLC.
The removal of subsidies, which had caused untold hardship for Nigerians, was one of President Bola Tinubu’s anti-poor policies that had sparked widespread protests by organised labour.
The National Industrial Court had received summons from the justice ministry alleging that the leadership of organised labour had disobeyed the court by protesting.
According to Mr. Ajaero, the NEC had noted that the justice ministry had persisted in allowing the court to be used as a tool to undermine the dominance of democratic principles and muzzle the voices of Nigerian workers.
”NEC-in-session resolved to go on total strike across the country any day labour leaders are summoned to court by the government through the NICN. To demand the immediate withdrawal of this litigious terrorism by the Federal Ministry of Justice before the end of work Friday, the 11th of August,” stated Mr Ajaero.
“To embark on a nationwide comprehensive strike beginning August 14 if this contemptuous court summons is not withdrawn by whosoever initiated it,” the communique warned.
In addition, the NLC president stated that the union was committed to continuing the necessary watchfulness to hold the government responsible for its assurances and governance in general.
Mr Ajaero went on to say that the union’s NEC was committed to the August 19 deadline for resolving the issues surrounding the petrol price increase, given the president’s and National Assembly’s assurances.
The federal government had issued a stern warning through the justice ministry on July 26 that the union’s planned strike would be considered contempt of court, an offence punishable by imprisonment.
On Monday, the ministry reiterated that the order issued by the National Industrial Court in Abuja on June 5 had halted all industrial action, including strikes, that had been planned to protest the elimination of fuel subsidies.
The justice ministry approached the industrial court to start a contempt case against the labour leaders after Wednesday’s protest by the labour unions.
In the first of two stages of a contempt lawsuit, the ministry submitted a notice of consequences of disobedience to the court’s order, also known as Form 48.
The notice was sent to the TUC President Festus Usifo, Chief Executive Nuhu Toro, General Secretary Emmanuel Ugboaja, Vice Presidents Audu Aruba, Adeyanju Adewale, and Kabiru Sani, as well as the President of the NLC.
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