FG’s meeting with NLC, TUC on petrol subsidy removal ends in deadlock

The meeting between the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the federal government has ended without an agreement.

The meeting, at the instance of the federal government, was intended to reach an agreement with organised labour after President Bola Tinubu’s announcement that petrol subsidy would cease to be in place by the end of June.

Speaking after the meeting on Wednesday night, Dele Alake, a member of the government’s team, said the meeting was engaging but did not provide details.

“We have been deliberating on finding very amicable resolutions to the issue at hand —to the queues and all of that and the increase in pump price,” Alake said.

“We had a very robust engagement. We cross-fertilised ideas, ideas flew from all sides and there is one thing that is remarkable even from the labour side — and that is Nigeria. We are all looking at the peace, progress and stability of Nigeria. That is what is paramount.

“Of course the NNPCL GCEO, Mr Kyari, is here, we cannot go into details now because the talks are still ongoing.

“We cannot finish everything at one setting, so we have adjourned now, we are continuing the talks at a later date very shortly. But the point is that the talks are ongoing and it’s always better for all sides to keep talking with a view to arriving at a very amicable resolution that will be in the longer-term interest for all Nigerians. That is as much as we can say now.”

NO CONSENSUS REACHED

However, Joe Ajaero, president of NLC and his counterpart in Trade Union Congress (TUC), Festus Osifo, said no consensus was reached at the meeting.

The organised labour said the meeting would reconvene after they have met with their members at a date yet to be fixed.

Those who were in attendance on the federal government’s side were Folashade Yemi-Esan, head of the federal civil service; Mele Kyari, group chief executive officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPCL); Tijjani Umar, permanent secretary of the state house, among others.

The petrol subsidy removal has long plagued past administrations as they attempted, albeit unsuccessfully, to eliminate it.

In his inaugural address on Monday, Tinubu said the petrol subsidy “is gone” and that his administration would discontinue it. His statement was met with pushback from organised labour.