National strike looms over failed meeting of Labour with FG on tariff, petrol price

There are emerging fears of national strike at the instance of the Organised Labour over the inability to reach agreement with the federal government on the increase of electricity and the pump price of petrol by the All Progressives Congress (APC) government.

The Organised Labour had on Sunday walked out on the Federal Government team at a negotiation meeting held at the Presidential Villa on the crucial national issues of the price increases of energy products.

The meeting was being presided by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, and was scheduled to preview the palliatives the federal government promised workers to alleviate the effect of the deregulation of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry.

Sunday’s meeting was expected to have labour raise concerns over the recent hike in petrol pump price but it was never to be as organised labour staged a walkout.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC)  after the walk out from the meeting on Sunday fixed an emergency media conference for Monday.

The expectation nis that the NLC briefing may be related to a planned national protest and strike over recent increase in the pump price of petrol and electricity tariff. It is coming at a time of increases in prices of foodstuffs and social services, rising incidence of insecurity and the prolonged national strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) protesting the imposition of IPPIS on the university teachers.