The federal government and organised labour will meet on Saturday, September 12, on the state of the economy.
Consequently, President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday gave the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, the directive to attend the meeting with an enlarged group of government institutions connected to government finances.
The meeting will enable the government to up open up its books in an attempt to convince Labour of the precarious situation of the country’s finances.
Speaking to State House correspondents after a meeting with the president on Friday, Ngige said: “The president has approved for us to have a bigger government side meeting with the organised private labour; all the government institutions that have to do with the finances of government so that we meet with them and show them the books.
“So, the invitation is going out to them this afternoon, the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Trade Union Congress and their affiliates or supporters and friends in the Civil Society Organisations.
“The meeting is scheduled for tomorrow. So, I will relate more with the Chief of Staff to the President and the leadership of the unions today so that we do this meeting tomorrow.
“At the meeting, government finances, challenges and everything will be laid bare on the table. Their own fears and what they think is also good for the Nigerian people, especially the workers, they will also table so that we look at it.”
Ngige said the recent hike in electricity tariff was done by the regulatory body based on certain realities confronting the sector.
“The electricity tariff as you know, the Electricity Regulatory Commission approved the increase based on certain electricity band R1 and R2 and even in the R2 band. You have soft bands so that we can protect the rural poor and people who are in the suburbs.
“So, we are going to look at them holistically because we want a stable labour industrial union in the country. So, the president has been briefed and he is in tune and has given the support to talk to everybody we need to talk to,” he said.
He said government was aware of the planned strike by the tripartite unions of the Non-Academic Staff Unions of Universities, adding that government had already invited them to a meeting, to discuss, so as to address their concerns.
“At the government level, we have discussed and we now want to do a special session with them. They come with their facts and the Accountant General will lead his team, the National Salaries and Incomes and Wages will also come and the Ministry of Labour will lead and then, we discuss and find out who is treating the other unfairly.”
