Boma Achenimie 
Barely 24 hours to the commencement of the nationwide strike, the Imo State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), has called on the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) to call off the nationwide strike scheduled to start on Monday, June 3.
Reverend Eches Divine, the State CAN Chairman made this appeal while speaking with newsmen in Owerri, the state capital about the nationwide strike by NLC.
He expressed fear that such a move could collapse the economy, urging the Federal Government and the NLC to return to the negotiating table and look at what enforceable demands.
“Joe Ajaero, the NLC President, is from my state, Imo. Can Mr Ajaero honestly say that Imo State or any other State Government in the Southeast can pay a minimum wage of ₦494,000 without collapsing?
READ ALSO:
- Tariff Hike: FG Pushing More Nigerians Into Poverty – NLC
- May Day: ‘Nigeria Retrogressive Amid Tinubu Economic Reforms – Bauchi NLC
- Subsidy Removal: FG, Labour To Sort Out Implementation Of Palliatives In 2 Months
“Even the organised private sector cannot pay that amount and has publicly aligned with the government to say let’s start somewhere and grow steadily.
“Does Joe Ajaero want to collapse the Nigerian economy? If not, why is he making impossible demands? Even his friends that we know that owned businesses cannot and have never paid any of their staff ₦400,000.
“Does Mr Ajaero want the Federal Government to push for a new minimum wage law that is unenforceable by all tiers of government and the organised private sector?
“He wants the minimum wage to increase by 1500 per cent. Has Nigeria’s revenue expanded by 1500 per cent? Does he want us to suffer Venezuelan and Zimbabwean style of hyperinflation? What will a national strike achieve if not national strife?”
“Mr. Ajaero has called more strikes than the last four Presidents of the Nigerian Labour Congress combined. Something is wrong somewhere.
“If we are fighting for workers, let us fight with love for our country and mature reasoning. Any wrong fight could sabotage the economy and make things worse for the workers and the nation as a whole.
“I, therefore, wish to appeal to NLC leadership and the Federal Government to return to dialogue with an open and honest mind to avert any damage to our already fragile economy,” he said.
