Senate Appeals To NLC Over lanned Strike

The Senate has called on  the Trade Union Congress, (TUC), and Nigeria Labour Congress, (NLC), to suspend the proposed three- day warning strike billed for next Wednesday to enforce the  implementation of the N18,000 minimum wage for workers  at all levels by states and federal governments.

This came at the heels of a motion sponsored by  Senator Ita Enang (PDP, Akwa Ibom)  which had also  urged the organised labour already engaged in a parley with the House of Representatives to cooperate with the House and  find a  lasting solution with a view to averting the proposed strike action.

In their  resolution, the lawmakers stood down the prayer seeking the House to dialogue with the organised labour on the impending strike on the basis that the House of Representatives which had started discussions with the Labour Unions was capable of achieving a lasting solution to the impasse, if allowed by all the  parties involved.

In his contribution on the motion, the Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu,  supporting  the motion urged  his colleagues in the Senate to allow the House of Representatives to handle the matter on behalf of the National Assembly.

According to him, the House had extensively discussed the issue at its plenary and has already invited the stakeholders for a consultative meeting on the matter. He said it would only be logical for the Senate to support the lower house as it engages labour  in finding solution to the matter.

His words “We passed a bill in the Senate here on minimum wage because we are convinced that this is the least the Nigerian worker deserves. The House has set up a similar Committee to discuss the matter with organised labour. I plead with my colleagues to allow the House in view of the fact that the House is dealing with this matter, we should give them full support.”

President of the Senate, David Mark at the end of the debate  ruled that  the House should be allowed to handle the matter on behalf of the National assembly while urging the  labour unions to give the House the opportunity to find a lasting solution to the  delay in  the implementation of the  minimum wage. The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and other organised labour unions  resolved to embark on a three-day warning strike as from Wednesday, July 20, 2011 to press home their demand for the implementation of the N18,000 minimum wage at federal, state and local government levels across the country.

Meanwhile, the Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Joy Emodi yesterday  assured of enhancing  a cordial working relationship between the legislature and the executive.

She stressed that she would improve on the existing cordial relationship between the National Assembly and the Presidency.

In a related development, the National Security Adviser [NSA] to the President, retired General Andrew Azazi said in Abuja yesterday, that the detachments of the Nigerian Army deployed in Maiduguri to quell the Boko Haram insurgency would not be removed because their removal will not be a solution to the terrorism crisis in Borno State,

He was apparently reacting to Tuesday’s call by eminent Borno citizens under the aegis of the Borno Elders Forum for troops to be withdrawn from Maiduguri streets on the grounds that their presence has not improved the security situation. They also accused the soldiers of killing innocent persons in the name of pursuing Boko Haram elements and of harassing city residents, leading to the current mass exodus from Maiduguri.

Azazi said while some residents might not be comfortable with the troops’ presence, their removal from Maiduguri is not a solution to the problem of terrorism in the state or in any part of Nigeria. He said, “The soldiers are barely one month old in Borno.

Soldiers deployed in any part of Nigeria must behave responsibly at all times. Unfortunately, when you are the target of a bomb attack, there is the possibility that you react in a manner not approved by the people. There is need for cooperation from all sides, the military, the people and everybody.”

The NSA also said, “Terrorism is a new phenomenon in Nigeria. It is a new threat and there are new initiatives to deal with the situation. The security issues in the country today are keeping the security agencies on their toes, but they need the cooperation of all Nigerians to put an end to the crises.’’

He said his office was already putting in place new measures to address the security challenges in the country.

“First is public enlightenment to let people know what to do to enhance their own security and safety. We have also created a counter-terrorism department to collate and analyse strategic intelligence on terrorism. Terrorism is a global phenomenon, but our objective in Nigeria is to focus on the country while cooperating with development partners and our neighbours to ensure that we check terrorism.”

Nneka Amaechi-Nnadi, Abuja