The Federal Government has resumed negotiations with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) on measures to alleviate the impacts of the removal of the petrol subsidy on Nigerians.
The meeting is taking place at the conference room of the Chief of Staff, where both parties reconvened for a follow-up session to the previous meeting held on June 5, 2023
During the last session, certain agreements were reached, leading to the suspension of the planned strike by the Labour until further discussions, scheduled for today, June 19.
Present at the meeting were representatives from the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), led by President Joe Ajaero, and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), led by President Festus Osifo. The government side was represented by Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila; Special Adviser to the President on Revenue, Zachaeus Adedeji; Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Verheijen; and the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Kachallom Daju.
Other key figures in attendance included Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL); Gbenga Komolafe, the Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC); Farouk Ahmed, the Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA); among others.
During the previous meeting on June 5, several agreements were reached. One of them was the establishment of a joint committee to review proposals for wage increase or awards, while also developing a framework and timeline for their implementation.
Additionally, the Federal Government, the TUC, and the NLC agreed to reassess the World Bank Financed Cash transfer scheme and explore the inclusion of low-income earners in the program. They also discussed the revival of the Compressed Natural Gas conversion program, which had been previously agreed upon with the labour centers in 2021.
