By Tope Musowo
Lagos
The Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, led by comrade Joe Ajaero has condemned the alleged killing of some workers in Nassarawa State while on a peaceful protest against the refusal of the state government to pay them over six months’ salary arrears.
According to a press statement signed by the factional president, Comrade Joe Ajaero made available to Blueprint, it was believed that the killing of these unarmed Nigerian workers in the glare of the public allegedly by the Nigerian Police and other security agencies was at the instance of the debtor Nassarawa State Government for protesting peacefully the state Government’s refusal to pay over six months in arrears of salaries.
The statement further stated that, “It is despicable and definitely unconscionable that a Government whose cardinal objective ought to be the protection of the lives and properties of its citizens will unleash this act of violence with murderous intent upon its own citizenry who were merely expressing their anger over the refusal of the Government to pay them salaries for work they have done.
“It is unfortunate that we now have a situation where debtors are now killing their creditors. There are acceptable tools that govern various engagements of the social partners within the nation’s
Industrial Relations Space.
These tools are agreed upon so as to avoid impunity, protect the weak and ensure peaceful engagements within the Industrial Relations space. What the Nassarawa State Government has done is a criminal negation not only of this but also of its avowals to protect the constitution of the federal republic.
Ajaero added that the situation becomes truly frightening given recent events especially as it concerns the sudden new found insidious-like utterances and actions by the Director General of Nigeria Employers’
Consultative Association (NECA) – Olusegun Oshinowo which may have been buoyed on the wings of a pernicious agreement amongst employers of labour in Nigeria. We are seriously worried that this is coming just exactly two weeks after such a similar mayhem at NECA obviously likely at the instigation of the DG of NECA”.
