The agreement between organized labor and the Federal Government to end their protests was reached only a day after meeting with President Bola Tinubu, but on Thursday night, the unions threatened to go on a nationwide strike starting on August 14 if their leaders were called to court for violating court orders.
The Federal Ministry of Justice’s Wednesday contempt of court application against the labor leaders served as the basis for the Nigeria Labour Congress’s decision.
It threatened to lay off employees if the Federal Government did not drop the lawsuit accusing the labor leadership of disobeying court orders.
Following the union’s National Executive Council meeting on Thursday evening in Abuja, NLC President Joe Ajaero made the announcement.
The National Industrial Court issued an order preventing the National Labor Congress and Trade Union Congress from taking any strike action over issues relating to “removal of fuel subsidy, hike in petrol prices, and consequential increase in cost of living” while the lawsuit is still pending.
This was done by the FG through the Federal Ministry of Justice in an effort to prevent a strike by the labor movement last month.
In a statement, Mrs.Beatrice Jedy-Agba, the Federal Ministry of Justice’s Permanent Secretary and the Solicitor-General of the Federation, urged the NLC to revoke the seven-day notice it issued regarding its intention to launch a nationwide strike on August 2 if labor union demands were not satisfied.
“The planned union strike would constitute contempt of court, a crime that carries a prison sentence, the justice ministry sternly warned in a statement on July 26.
The FG claimed that since the case was already in court, taking such a strike action would amount to using self-help.
However, despite the court’s injunction, the organized labor announced a nationwide protest because it was frustrated by the FG’s slow response to negotiations and the holdup in implementing palliative measures to ease the pain of subsidy removal.
Femi Falana, SAN, a Lagos attorney and solicitor for organized labor, insisted, however, that the proposed protest was legitimate.
Because of this, the protests that took place on Wednesday paralyzed economic and commercial activity nationwide and caused banks, offices, and courts to close in several states.
The Federal Government on Wednesday began a contempt of court proceeding against the labor leaders as retaliation for their defiance, which infuriated the unions.
Form 48, titled “Notice of Consequences of Disobedience to Court Order,” was submitted to the National Industrial Court in Abuja.
The Federal Government and the Attorney General of the Federation are the applicants, and the various organized labor figures are the respondents.
The notice was sent to the following individuals: TUC President Festus Usifo, General Secretary Nuhu Toro, Deputy Presidents Audu Aruba, Adeyanju Adewale, and Kabiru Sani, General Secretary Emmanuel Ugboaja, and NLC President Joe Ajaero.
“You should be aware that unless you abide by the instructions provided in the Order of the National Industrial Court, Abuja, delivered by Honourable Justice Y. The contempt warning, penned by Senior Registrar Balogun Olajide, on June 5th 2023, as per the attached Enrolled Order, you will be guilty of Contempt of Court and be liable to be sentenced to prison.
In a statement released on Thursday in response to the accusation, the NLC President claimed that the Ministry of Justice and National Industrial Court have continued to “permit themselves to be used as agents of anti-democracy.”
Despite having agreed to stop protesting after meeting with the President, the labor center noted that, should the government refuse to drop the lawsuit it filed against the labor leaders, it would begin a nationwide strike on August 14, 2023.
Ajaero emphasized the decisions of the NLC and stated that the NEC resolved to support and affirm the decision to halt further nationwide protests while resolving to maintain the necessary vigilance to hold the government responsible for its promises and governance in general.
Falana, SAN, the attorney for Organized Labor, pleaded with the President to summon the Federal Ministry of Justice permanent secretary to account for the contempt allegations brought against the labor union.
According to the human rights attorney, “Labour is not in violation of any agreements. When a ministry representative left the room to bring contempt charges, they were in the middle of a meeting with the president. What a humiliation that was.
