Ahead of the planned nationwide strike by the Nigeria Labour Congress, (NLC), 65 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have pulled out, saying the strike might stir up anarchy and cause more hardship on citizens.
The CSOs under the aegis of the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations Forum also warned against going the way Sudan went and called for dialogue with the Federal Government.
“Any attempt to embark on a nationwide strike during this critical period of hunger and a harsh economy could be hijacked by hoodlums and criminal elements, who have been waiting for the slightest opportunity to unleash terror; disrupt public peace, and loot business premises and markets,” the CSOs said.
On February 16, the NLC announced a nationwide protest scheduled for February 27 and 28 over the failure to implement the agreements reached on October 2, following the removal of the fuel subsidy.
This decision followed the conclusion of a 14-day ultimatum to the Federal Government regarding the widespread hardship.
The Coalition of the CSOs, which disclosed this in a statement jointly signed by Comrade Buba Ibrahim Mohammed and Comrade George Phillips, the Coordinator and Secretary, insisted that the strike action will only stir up civil unrest and further worsen the already bad security situation as well as damage the fragile economy.
“As civil society organizations, we do understand the depth of economic challenges facing ordinary citizens, especially the workers, but we cannot fold our arms and support a move that will further damage and threaten our peaceful coexistence,” they said.
While stating that its not unawares that the labour unions had the constitutional right to make demands and embark on strike to drive home their demands ,it maintained that NLC should know that Nigeria is already sitting on keg of gun powder that must not be allowed to explode.
“Part of reasons we have refused to join forces with labour unions to create anarchy and cause more hardship for the people . Instead, we are making frantic efforts to meet with federal government to discuss how to amicably resolve the issues at stake.
“We recognise the importance of addressing labour-related concerns and advocating for workers’ rights, we kindly urge the labour unions to explore alternative means of dialogue and negotiation with the relevant authorities,” they added.