The Federal Government, Wednesday, announced that the planned solidarity march by the Nigeria Labour Congress with the striking members of the University-based unions is illegal.
On July 17, 2022, the NLC announced that it would kick off a nationwide protest on July 26 and 27 to pressure the federal government to resolve the five-month-long strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities and three other sister unions.
But addressing State House Correspondents after Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting chaired by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said the planned street protest is illegal since the NLC has no pending disputes with the government.
Mohammed accused the congress of being motivated by partisan interests, saying it is supposed to be “completely insulated from politics.”
He said, “The NLC is not a political party. The NLC can go on strike or protest if the rights of NLC members are involved. What the NLC is planning in the next few days is about interest. There’s no dispute whatsoever between NLC as a body with the federal government.
“Well yes, there’s a dispute between some members of the NLC, ASUU and the federal government which is being looked into. And NLC itself is a party to the committee that is looking into the solution.
“So calling out people on street protest, you begin to wonder, what is the motive of NLC in this matter? But you see here, we do not interrogate what NLC is doing. NLC by its own laws cannot even give out pamphlets. And NLC is supposed to be completely insulated from politics.”
The PUNCH reports that ASUU embarked on a one-month warning strike on February 14. Other associations such as the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, Non-Academic Staff Union of Allied and Educational Institutions and National Association of Academic Technologists later followed suit, shutting down their activities in universities nationwide.
