The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, has cautioned labour unions against the indefinite strike they plan to embark on to protest the hardships associated with petrol subsidy removal.
The labour unions comprising the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) had, on Tuesday, declared their plan to embark on the indefinite nationwide strike on 3 October.
The AGF, who doubles as the Minister of Justice, issued the warning on behalf of the federal government against the strike in a letter he addressed to the unions’ lawyer, Femi Falana.
In the letter dated 26 September but made public on Thursday by Modupe Ogundoro, director of press at the Federal Ministry of Justice, the minister reminded the labour unions of a subsisting court order issued in a pending suit at the industrial court concerning the dispute.
Fagbemi said the proposed strike “is in clear violation of the pending interim injunctive order granted on 5 June 2023, restraining both Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress from embarking on any industrial action.”
The AGF highlighted the developments leading to the latest threat by the labour unions to go on a nationwide strike.
He referenced the exchange of correspondence between his ministry and Falana’s law firm “before and after the nationwide ‘action/protest’ declared by the NLC on 2 August 2023.”
“Whilst your clients had maintained that the nationwide protest by NLC is in furtherance of its constitutional right to embark on protests, the Ministry has repeatedly advised on the need to advise your clients to refrain from resorting to self-help and taking actions capable of undermining subsisting orders of a court of competent jurisdiction,” Mr Fagbemi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), wrote.
The labour unions had been battling with the federal government since President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of the petrol subsidy at his inauguration on 29 May.
Strike threats, court orders
Since then, the unions have issued a series of threats to embark on strike action.
A judge of the National Industrial Court in Abuja, Olufunke Anuwe, at the instance of the Federal Ministry of Justice, issued an order on 5 June, two days before the NLC and the TUC planned to embark on a nationwide strike on 7 June.
The judge reaffirmed the order on 19 June, further restraining the labour unions from going on strike.
In August, the federal government filed a contempt suit at the National Industrial Court in Abuja after a protest the union leaders organised to further press the government to address the negative impacts of the fuel subsidy removal. The government said the protest was in violation of the 5 June order of the court.
But the justice ministry later withdrew the contempt suit, citing the intervention of President Tinubu to give room for further negotiation with the union leaders.
But negotiations have failed to yield the desired results, prompting the unions to declare on Tuesday another plan to embark on strike.
He urged Falana, also a SAN, to advise the labour unions on the need to “protect the integrity of courts and observe the sanctity of court orders.”
He recalled how his ministry had instituted contempt proceedings against the labour leaders, but had to terminate the action “upon the intervention of the President and National Assembly, coupled with the decision of the labour unions to discontinue their action/protest”.
“This was advisedly done to enable the government and labour union to engage in further negotiations without any form of encumbrances,” he wrote.
He said from a review of the contents of the above communique and available media reports, “the proposed strike action is premised principally in furtherance of issues connected with the removal of fuel subsidy, hike in fuel price and consequential matters of making provisions for palliatives and workers welfare.”
He added: “We wish to reiterate that a court order, regardless of the opinion of any party on it, remains binding and enforceable until set aside.
“It is the expectation of the public that the labour unions would lead in obedience and observance of court orders and not in its breach. It is therefore the earnest expectation of this Office that your distinguished law firm will advise the labour unions on the need to protect the integrity of courts and observe the sanctity of court orders.”
He urged Mr Falana “to impress upon the organised labour unions to note the fact that their proposed strike action is in gross breach of the subsisting court order, as well as the appropriateness of addressing their grievances/demands within the ambit of the law.”