NLC gives reasons for imminent strike, likens subsidy palliatives to ‘tokenism’

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has once again, criticised the Federal Government’s palliatives following the removal of fuel subsidy.

While the federal government had abolished the commodity’s subsidy several months prior, it nevertheless provided food aid to the state governments for distribution to Nigerians. It also granted them N5 billion.

But hours after launching a two-day statewide strike owing to the implications of fuel subsidy reduction, the NLC President Joe Ajaero, on Friday, said the distribution of food palliatives is inadequate to fight the ramifications of the government’s move.

Ajaero, who made this call on Channels Television’s Politics Today, said, “If you share that N5bn or even the five trucks of rice or grain, many people may not get one or half cup of rice.

“If you share the N5bn, many people, probably within the working class or the poor of the poor, may not get N1,500. Now, is that the palliative?”

Read Also: NLC declares two-day strike over fuel subsidy removal

The labour chief described the palliatives as “mere tokenism”, maintaining they cannot cushion the impacts of the subsidy removal policy.

“When you do it, you reduce us to mere tokenism – maybe give us N10,000 for three months and leave people to die. That is not the issue, “Ajaero added.

“We have to sit down and look at some measures that would cushion the effects or that would substitute the suffering of Nigerians. So, by the time you say you are giving state governors N5bn each, what does that translate to if they share it?”

He, however, said, that if the money budgeted for the palliatives was put into the public transport system, the people would be better for it.

“For every day a worker moves from his house to the office and comes back with a reduced transportation rate, he may save N1,000 daily,” he argued.

“If he tries that for 28 days or even 20 days, he may be saving about N20,000 on transportation alone. That’s a policy. That would help even the farmer who moves his goods and services from one point to the other.”

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