Those padding budgets, looting treasury guilty of treason, NLC replies Akume

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said it did not commit treason, defending it’s demands for a better wage as clear and just.

The NLC responded to comments by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, who accused labour of committing treason by shutting the national grid.

“Nowhere in the world has labour ever tampered with the national grid. It is treason. Treasonable felony is economic sabotage; you don’t do that,” Akume in a statement last Thursday in Abuja at a meeting with the National Executive Council (NEC), of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN.

“We are trying to rebuild the economy. The president is picking it up, and they want to destroy it. Of what use is that to all of us? That is not the way.”

The labour groups had proposed N615,500 and then N494,000 as the new national minimum wage, and embarked on an indefinite strike on Monday. It called it off on Tuesday to pave the way for further negotiations with the government.

During the strike, workers had shut down the grid and withdrew their services from the airports among other actions.

Reacting to Akume comments in a statement on Friday, Benson Upah, NLC’s head of public affairs, said those looting the treasury and padding the budgets are the ones guilty of sabotaging the economy.

“These demands are grounded in the need for economic justice and fairness for all Nigerian workers and citizens. The SGF we are sure clearly knows those whose actions are treasonable and sabotage our economy,” Upah said.

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“Those who loot our treasury around the country, those who divert public resources meant for hospitals and schools; those who are involved in foreign exchange round tripping; padding of budgets and inflating contracts including those who steal trillions of naira in the name of subsidy are the real economic saboteurs who commit treasonable felony.

“These people are in costly Agbada and drive in convoys all around the nation occupying the corridors of power and not innocent workers who are not slaves but chose to withdraw their services because of the inhuman treatment meted on them by the government.

“We reject completely the unfortunate insinuations around the SGF’s remarks because strikes are not only legal but also a civic duty.

Je stated that they are surprised that the SGF will demonstrate such a glaring sense of unawareness to the understanding of the fact that when workers withdraw their services which is their right, machines cannot operate themselves so, they grind to a halt.

He added that labour would not surrender the trust and confidence Nigerian workers and people have bestowed on them to blackmail by the SGF or any other official.