Nigeria

NLC says it will embark on industrial resistance over electricity tariff increase

Wednesday, January 06, 2021 at 5:07 PM by Kess Ewubare

- The NLC is gearing up for a showdown with the federal government over electricity tariffs

- The organised labour said it is dissatisfied with a recent announcement by NERC

- Labour leader, Ayuba Wabba, warned that there would be consequences if the government fails to heed the demands of the union

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The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has reacted angrily to reports on the increase in electricity tariff by the Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

The union in a statement obtained by Legit.ng on Wednesday, January 6, threatened to call for an industrial resistance if the new tariff is not reversed.

NLC says it will embark on industrial resistance over electricity tariff increase — NLC said it is opposed to any tariff increase. Photo: @NLCHeadquarters
Source: Twitter

The president of the union, Ayuba Wabba, accused the federal government of trying to further imperil the local economy with the tariff hike.

He said:

"This increase would be the umpteenth time in a space of less than one year. The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) vehemently condemns this attempt to start the year 2021 for Nigerians on the grinding stone.

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"It is even colder that this tariff increase was announced without recourse to the negotiation process that the government and organised labour in Nigeria signed up to about three months ago."

The NLC president said it is questionable that NERC denied any new increase in tariff but announced that electricity tariff would be adjusted from N2 per kilowatt/hour to N4 per kilowatt/hour – a 100% tariff increase.

Wabba stated that the announcement by NERC was contrary to the agreement the government signed with the NLC.

The organised labour asked the government to stop the new tariff or face opposition from Nigerian workers.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian government has been tagged a betrayer. This is the position of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC).

The union was reacting to the recent hike in electricity tariff approved by the NERC, Channels TV reported.

This is contained in a statement signed by TUC President, Comrade Quadri A. Olaleye. He said the government increased the tariff despite the fact negotiations were still ongoing with organised labour over the issue.