NLC,TUC Set for Show Down, Demand Immediate Reversal of State of Emergency
Olufemi Orunsola
Reports reaching the news desk of OPEN TELEVISION NAIJA (OTN) News have it that the organised labour in Nigeria is set for a showdown with government, demanding the immediate reversal of what it calls "unconstitutional State of Emergency" in Rivers State, in the interest of democracy, economic stability, and the welfare of Nigerian workers.
A statement by the organised labour tagged: Stop this assault on democracy now released by the workers' group sighted by OTN News says. Nigeria’s democracy must not be sacrificed on the altar of political expediency.
The statement, jointly signed by the Presidents of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Joe Ajaero and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, Festus Osifo, unequivocally condemned what they described as “Mr. President’s hasty and unconstitutional declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State”, stressing that the action blatantly violates the provisions of Part two, Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and constitutes an overreach of executive power.
The Labour movement maintained that the purported suspension or removal of the Governor, Deputy Governor, and the State House of Assembly was not only unlawful but a direct assault on democracy, stating further that it sets a dangerous precedent, eroding constitutional governance and threatening the autonomy of sub national governments.
The statement warned that "No democratic society can thrive where elected leaders are arbitrarily removed at the whims of the President, while adding that the move, which it described as reckless, should deeply concern every reasonable governor and citizen who believes in the rule of law.
Concluding, the labour movement said that it will not remain silent while the livelihoods of workers and the well-being of ordinary Nigerians are threatened by political machinations.
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