Nigerian workers still struggling for good governance, better welfare, says TUC
The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has said that it is disheartening that at 61, Nigerian workers are still in the struggle for good governance while seeking better welfare and decent workplaces.
It said the organised labour would not stop nor be deterred until Nigeria gets it right as a country.
The union in a message to celebrate Nigeria at 61, said despite the claim to independence the imperial masters through the Bretton Woods institutions, still dictates economic policies.
A statement signed by President and Secretary-General, Quadri Olaleye and Musa-Lawal Ozigi, respectively, said at 61, Nigeria was still crawling.
The union stated that the neo-liberal policies of the West have done Nigeria more harm than good.
Noting that the contributions of the Nigerian working class to the nation’s developmental struggle could not be over-emphasised, the union maintained that the anniversary availed the citizens another opportunity to assess the country’s achievement, successes, goals and aspirations.
According to TUC, Nigeria is abundantly blessed with resources enough to make her rank among the first three leading economies in the world.
“Beyond the resources from the ground, Nigerians have proven to have the innate ability to create wealth. Our resources have not been well managed by the elites; hence, the country is categorised today as the poverty capital of the world. This has become our tale because appointments are predicated on political affiliation, ethnicity and religion. It breaks the heart that our once peaceful country has become volatile and uncertain today,” it said.
The major trouble with Nigeria, according to the union, is that it has not been fortunate to have patriotic and dedicated leaders.
It stated that “Nigerians have not been allowed to truly choose their leaders as seen in the gang up against electronic transmission of the election result.
“All agitations and social frustrations across the country are not unconnected to the failure of the elite to take advantage of our national diversities and build collective national prosperity. However, even at 61, the country can still find its feet if we have the right leaders that are ready to ride on equity, fairness and justice.
“At 61, we still do not have functional refineries. There are also issues of oil spillage, gas flaring and dearth of infrastructure. Oil-producing states groan daily over the government’s indifference to their plight. Global politics and economics are not helping our national development.
“If the refineries and other critical sectors were working at optimum capacity the unemployment rate would have dropped. Government should not be comfortable creating employment elsewhere while the unemployment rate at home keeps increasing,” the statement said.
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