Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has given a nationwide strike notice beginning on 2 August to protest the removal of fuel subsidy by the federal government.

Although no official statement has been issued by the Congress, its spokesperson, Ben Upah, confirmed the strike plan to an online newspaper on Wednesday.

“Yes, the nationwide strike will commence on 2 August 2023. We will soon issue a communique to that effect, ” Upah said

General Secretary of the NLC, Emma Ugboaja, did not respond to calls to his mobile phone on Wednesday.

It was, however, gathered that Congress gave the government a seven-day ultimatum to reverse all perceived anti-poor policies failing which it’ll proceeded on the industrial action.

President Bola Tinubu had, during his inauguration on 29 May, announced the removal of fuel subsidy, an action that suddenly pushed up the price of the product.

A few days later, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) announced a new price regime ranging from N537 to N600 per litre of petrol.

On Tuesday last week, the NNPCL further pushed the price to N617 per litre, saying market forces informed it.

The court had in June stopped the NLC from going on strike following a case instituted by the government.

A committee set up by the government to negotiate with the NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) on subsidy removal has not made much progress.

The strike threat is coming a few hours after the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) began an indefinite strike.

NARD embarked on the strike on Tuesday night despite the intervention by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas.

The doctors are demanding implementation of a one-for-one replacement policy for healthcare workers, immediate payment of all salary arrears, implementation of a Consolidated Medical Salary Structure, and a new hazard allowance, among others.

PT