The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) insisted on proceeding with its planned activities despite last-minute troubleshooting efforts by the Federal Government to prevent a two-day warning strike and national protests against economic hardship in the country proved unsuccessful on Monday night.
NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero while speaking after a closed-door meeting hosted by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF, Senator George Akume in his office said it is the duty of security agencies to provide cover for peaceful protesters.
The labour leader while assuring peaceful protests, pledged to present the demands of organized labor to the National Assembly.
Ajaero said; “The rally goes on but it is part of their (security agencies) constitutional responsibility to make sure that the rally is peaceful, while we are going to try on our side to make sure it is peaceful.
“Usually, there is no rally that we just do for the sake of walking around. We have demands that we present. Maybe by Tuesday when we present these demands, a copy of it will be made public”.
The meeting was attended by top government officials including SGF Akume, Ministers of Agriculture, Budget and National Planning, Labour and Employment, and the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice. Also in attendance were the Head of Service of the Federation, Dr. Folasade Yemi-Esan, the Director General of the State Services, and leaders of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), among others.