The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has described 2023, as beckoning hope for workers, which must not be wasted, especially as the election season approaches.
The NLC said it has turned up a flicker of light in directing the political energy of Nigerias working class and ordinary people, by developing a Nigerian Workers Charter of Demands.
The Charter of Demands, according to the NLC, speaks to the key issues that agitate the mind of the average worker and citizen.
President of the NLC, Ayuba Wabba, said the Charter seeks answers to the question of stunted national socio-economic growth as represented by the continued underdevelopment of the nations human and natural resources. He further said the Charter has identified poor salaries, abysmal working conditions and horrendous living realities as a major clog in the wheel of optimum national development.
According to him, of particular concern to Labour is the criminal neglect of Nigerias public refineries, which are all operating at near-zero capacity. This, according to him, is truly shameful for the sixth-largest producer of crude oil in the world and the largest exporter of crude oil in Africa.
He lamented that many Nigerian workers and ordinary people were currently going through the dark tunnel of soaring inflation, marked by very steep increases in prices of essential goods and services; adding that they were going through a dark tunnel of general apprehension about their security and personal safety as criminals and terrorists hold sway in many parts of the country looting, raping, kidnapping and killing.
Despite the numerous challenges witnessed in 2022, however, he expressed hope that Nigerias brightest morning was just ahead in the New Year, especially with the 2023 general elections. He urged workers to be very deliberate in their engagement with the political process, adding that elections are the time to ask critical questions and make rational choices.
President of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), Festus Osifo, who noted that the year 2022 was the most difficult year for Nigerian workers, said governments promise to lift millions of citizens out of poverty instead made 133 million Nigerians multi-dimensionally poor.
Osifo, who is the National President of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), however, said the hope is not damped, as the masses have a unique opportunity to turn things around in 2023 through the power of their vote. According to him, the projection would be great if the country has prudent managers of resources, stating that it may be a better year for Nigerian workers.
