Protest: We’ll Hold You Responsible For Any Attack On Workers, Labour Union Tells Wike

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said it has received credible information that the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike plans to mobilise hired thugs to disrupt Tuesday’s peaceful protest by workers in the state.

LEADERSHIP reports that organised labour comprising, the NLC and TUC have concluded plans to hold a protest in PortHarcourt on Tuesday to demand an end to what they describe as infractions against workers by the Rivers state governor.

NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba said in a statement on Sunday that in the event that any harm comes to any worker during the protest on Tuesday, Nigerian workers and the international labour community would hold the governor personally to account, saying after all, he remains the Chief Security Officer of Rivers State.

Wabba said the right to peaceful assembly and protest is not just a Constitutional Right as provided for and guaranteed by Section 40 of Nigeria’s Constitution but is also a fundamental Universal Human Rights protected by international treaties signed up to by Nigeria.

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The NLC President said on the night of July 27, 2020 some armed hoodlums ransacked the sealed Secretariat of the NLC and vandalized equipment and installation worth millions of naira, adding that up till now, no single arrest has been made on that incident.

Wabba said, “Instead of wasting the state resources in the prosecution of a needless war against innocent workers, we urge Governor Nyesom Wike to commit his time and the state resources to attend to the industrial concerns of the workers in Rivers State.

“These concerns include the payment of outstanding salary arrears he deliberately refused to pay workers in the state especially to teachers and healthcare workers, promotion arrears since 2015, payment of pension and gratuity to retired workers in the state since 2015, issuing of official circular to effect the payment the new national minimum wage, conclusion of the negotiation for consequential wages adjustment arising from the new national minimum wage, remittance of withheld check off dues deductions to unions in the state, unsealing of Rivers NLC Secretariat, the withdrawal of trumped up charges against labour leaders in Rivers State and cessation of harassment and assault on workers in the state.

“The foregoing demands are in line with workers’ rights as enshrined and guaranteed by Chapter Two of Nigeria’s Constitution, relevant sections of the Section 5(3) of the Labour Act, Section 17 of the Trade Union Act and Articles 1 – 4 of Convention 87 on the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize and Articles 1 – 4 of the Convention 98 on the Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining of the International Labour Organization (ILO).”