The joint National Executive Councils of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have suspended the ongoing strike by workers nationwide.
Organised labour called the strike over the beating and injuring of NLC National President, Joe Ajaero, in Owerri, the Imo State capital, on 1 November, when he led a protest over that government’s failure to pay salaries of 24 months and other sundry anti-workers’ actions.
The unions accused the Imo State government and the police in the state of sponsoring thugs and giving them a cover to brutalise Mr Ajaero.
However, on Wednesday, the leaders disclosed that they agreed to suspend their strike after the intervention of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, and a meeting they held with him and the Minister of Labour, Simon Lalong, at the Abuja Office of the NSA on Wednesday afternoon.
The development came a few hours after the labour leaders listed six demands and subsequently met with the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu.
The labour leaders later converged at the NLC National Secretariat in Abuja.
Begun in the evening around 7pm, the meeting lasted for close to one hour during which various affiliates and state chapters reviewed the outcome of the meeting held between the leaders of the organised labour and Ribadu.
“The NEC of the NLC and the TUC has suspended the strike. We did this based on our trust for the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, who gave us his words,” National Deputy Vice-President of the TUC, Tommy Etim, told reporters in Abuja.
Ribadu assured them of the arrest of those responsible for the brutalisation of NLC President Joe Ajaero in Imo State in October.
In their demands released earlier on Wednesday, the labour unions demanded that justice be served over Ajaero’s attack or else the strike would continue.
Speaking with journalists after the meeting with the NSA on Wednesday, TUC president, Festus Osifo, said the Federal Government, through Mr Ribadu, had given an assurance to meet their demands.
Labour’s list of demands are:
OUR DEMANDS
- ARREST AND PROSECUTE MR. CHINASA NWANERI THE S.A ON SPECIAL DUTIES , THE DEADLY GANG LEADER OF HOPE UZODIMMA THUGS : HE LED THE ATTACK A GAINST WORKERS ON THAT DAY
- ARREST, PROSECUTE AND DISMISS LL POLICE OFFICERS INVOLVED IN THE RUTALIZATION OF NLC PRESIDENT AND ORKERS IN IMO STATE
- ARREST AND PROSECUTE ALL THUGS THAT ATTACKED THE NLC PRESIDENT IN IMO STATE
- ARREST, PROSECUTE AND DISMISS THE CHIEF SECURITY OFFICER IMO STATE GOVERNMENT HOUSE, SP SHABA : HE LED, PARTICIPATED AND PROVIDED COVER FOR THUGS TO BRUTALIZE WORKERS IN IMO STATE
- ARREST, PROSECUTE AND DISMISS HE POLICE AREA COMMANDER THAT ED THE BRUTALIZATION OF NLC RESIDENT AND OTHER WORKERS IN MO STATE
- INVESTIGATE AND PROSECUTE THE ORMER IMO STATE COMMISSIONER OF POLICE