Akwa Ibom State workers under the aegis of Nigeria Labour Congress, have called on the Federal Government to pay them their own wage allowance of thirty five thousand naira to cushion the effects of petroleum subsidy removal, as done their federal government counterparts.
The Chairman of NLC, Akwa Ibom State Comrade Sunny James, speaking on behalf of the workers at the first day of the two days protest rally, said if President Ahmed Bola Tinibu refuses to hearken to labour demand, they would not be left with any other option than to proceed on indefinite strike action till the Federal Government accedes to their demands.
“We need our own wage award. others have collected their own, We buy from the same markets. We need CNG busses and cars to take us from and to work.”
Aside from demand for payment of wage allowance directed to the Presidency, other demands that also featured in the address of the Akwa Ibom State labour union included payment of backlog of allowances, ranging from leave, promotion and several others allowances.
On the planned arrangement by Akwa Ibom State government to establish bulk purchase agency where essential commodities would be stock piled to be sold to people at subsidised prices, to ameliorate the suffering of the poor masses occasioned by astronomical increases in prices of staple food items, the labour expert gave a thumbs up to Governor Umo Eno and advised that government should monitor the activities of those that would be in charge for effective running of the agency.
The protest rally which recorded the lowest turn out in the history of the labour movement protests in Akwa Ibom State, was boycotted by Trade Union Congress and many other labour affiliates.
The Tide’s source reports that over three thousand police personnel were deployed to the streets of Uyo to foresfall the hoodlums cashing in on the peaceful protest.
Attempt to speak with the protesters almost met a brick wall but for one respondent who opted to speak on condition of anonymity, saying that the reason the number of protesters was low is because so many who would have loved to be part of the protest rally but that they did have money to pay their fares down to the venue of the protest rally.
Though the protest was peaceful, placards bearing inscriptions such as “Harmonise Pension for our Retirees” , “give us cng buses and cars as promised” and many others coupled with the labour solidarity songs were wielded in a staccato manner that could have degenerated into violence.