In spite of the plea from the federal government, the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) on Tuesday protested against the economic hardship in the country.
Interestingly, the Network of Civil Society For Economic Sustainability, also made good its threat by embarking on a counter protest to rally in support of the policies of President Bola Tinubu.
While the NLC led by its President, Joe Ajaero commenced their protest from the Labour House, marching through the Ministry of Finance to the federal secretariat and ended up at the National Assembly, the pro-government protesters commenced theirs from Unity Fountain and also marched to the National Assembly.
Prior to the protest, the NLC had expressed fears that the federal government had hired the services of some people to unleash terror on them during the protest.
There was however no confrontation between the
But addressing journalists on Tuesday in Abuja, the Convener of the group, Kabiru Matazu, said contrary to insinuations in some quarters, they were not out to attack anyone.
His words: “As you can see, we are peaceful protesters. We have no reason whatsoever to attack anybody. We only implore them to exploit the part of dialogue, coming out on the street is not the best way. We are peace loving people. We have no reason whatsoever to go into confrontation with anybody for any reason. And as journalists, you will see for yourself.”
Matazu added that inasmuch as they respect the rights of NLC to legitimately and freely exercise and express themselves, they disagree with them and their method.
He said while the reasons NLC was protesting including implementation of a new minimum wage, escalating hardship, insecurity, rising poverty, hyperinflation, and soaring prices of essential commodities, are undeniably genuine and demand the attention of every citizen and stakeholder, protests are not and would never be a viable solution.
Matazu noted that Tinubu’s administration has demonstrated a dedicated commitment to addressing these challenges with the urgency they deserve.
He, therefore, urged the NLC to engage in a constructive dialogue with the government instead of grounding economic activities, exacerbating the issues and further making life hard for the common man.
It stressed that while they stand united with the NLC in advocating for the legitimate demands of workers, they vehemently oppose any attempt to disrupt economic activities through unnecessary protests. Such actions can be easily exploited by miscreants, leading to mayhem and destruction.
The Convener noted: “As we all know, the impact of this subsidy removal and the impact of the floating of the Naira will be felt. But in the meantime, Nigeria start to gain tremendously from these policies.
“So we are pleading with the NLC to give the government the chance for these policies to succeed. They should not allow themselves to be used by opposition elements who never mean well for this government. That’s why we are here to express our solidarity to the policies and programs for president as soon as you bola Ahmed Tinubu. We are 100% behind him.”