Lawrence Olaoye Abuja 
The Presidency, yesterday, mocked Nigerians opposed to the harsh economic policies of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and warned supporters of the government to be wary of the antics of the opposition whom, it said, was bent towards pulling the current government down.
Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina described as selfish, the attitude of some Nigerians, particularly members of the opposition, towards the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) since the recent suspension of a nationwide strike in the country.
The organised labour had planned to shut down the entire economy last Monday in protest over the increase in the pump price of petrol and a hike in electricity tariff in September. However, the strike was called off at the last minute after a meeting between government officials and labour leaders in Abuja. The move by labour attracted a lot of criticisms from a cross section of Nigerians who saw it as a huge trade off and compromise. Apparently celebrating
the suspension of what could have been a major blow to the economy and a huge minus to the government, Adesina said organized labour merely “toed the path of sense and sensibility last week”, when they agreed with government on the imperatives of fuel price adjustment and opened a further window of dialogue on the service based electricity tariff. According to him, those who wanted the strike to go on have been “dolorous, disgruntled, and disconsolate” since labour applied the brakes. Adesina accused those Nigerians who wanted the strike action of harbouring negative intentions against the government of the day in a bid to extract their pound of flesh from the leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who took part in the infamous Occupy Nigeria rally in 2012. “They had apparently perfected plans to use the strike by the labour unions as smokescreen to unleash anarchy on the land, fomenting mayhem and civil disobedience. But the plan blew up in their faces, and they have been in severe pains since then. They have launched series of tirades against organized labour. “For some interest groups, their intention was to use the umbrella of g the strike to further their whimsical and pie-in-thesky dream of a revolution in the country.
It went bust in their faces. “For some others, Bitter-Enders, who have remained entrenched in pre-2015 and 2019 elections mode, it was opportunity to avenge the 2012 Occupy Nigeria protests, which they believe largely devalued the government of the day, and led to its eventual ouster in 2015.
“The strike that was to have come up last week, they wanted to use as opportunity for a pound of flesh, which they calculated would weaken the government so much, and influence the 2023 elections. For them, it was all about hanker for power, its trappings and appurtenances.
Nothing about love of country. They have since then been calling organized labour all sorts of names, claiming they deceived Nigerians. “The times in which we live – with severe security, economic and social challenges – call for all hands to be on deck, and goodwill and support for government, as it strives to put the nation on an even keel. We commend organized labour for putting the country first.
“Those sponsoring and encouraging discord and anarchy, either for selfish ends, or as revenge for perceived injuries, are enemies of the country. Nigerians are urged to beware of them, as the Muhammadu Buhari government is only interested in engendering better quality of life for the citizenry. Nothing more,” Adesina said.
It would be recalled that in January 2012 when the Federal Government under President Goodluck Jonathan announced the removal of subsidy and raised the pump price of petrol, the leaders of the then opposition political parties, most of whom are in government today, took to the streets in a mass protest. Ironically, eight years after, they have rolled out the same policy.
