The National Industrial Court, NIC, sitting in
Abuja, yesterday, stopped the Nigerian Labour Congress,
NLC, and the Trade Unions Congress, TUC, from
embarking on strike today.
This came as Organised Labour and its civil society allies,
yesterday, vowed to go ahead with the planned indefinite
strike from today to make government reverse the N145
per litre pump price of petrol, despite the restraining order
by the court.
Meanwhile, Senate, yesterday, threw its weight behind
President Muhammadu Buhari’s hike in the price of fuel to
N145 per litre from N86.50
Organised Labour’s position came on a day president of a
faction of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Mr. Joe
Ajaero, said Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas
Workers, NUPENG, Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff
Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, National Union of
Electricity Employees, NUEE, and others would not join the
strike.
Consequently, the Wabba faction and the Federal
Government, yesterday, agreed to set up a joint technical
committee to review the new fuel pump price template of
N135-N145 within the next two weeks and also work
towards reviewing the current national minimum wage of
N18, 000.
President of the National Industrial Court, NIC, Justice
Babatunde Adejumo, in a ruling, yesterday, restrained the
labour unions from going on strike, pending the
determination of a suit the federal government lodged
before it.
Justice Adejumo further ordered all the parties to maintain
status quo until the legal dispute was settled.
The order followed an ex-parte application filed by the
Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of
Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN.
approached the NIC, begging it to restrain the labour
unions from “shutting down the nation”.
Relying on Section 14 of the 1999 Constitution, as
amended, the Federal Government insisted that it would
not be “in the national interest” for the NLC and TUC to
proceed on nationwide strike over the fuel price increase.
Malami argued that no amount of damages could serve as
compensation, if the labour unions were allowed to shut
down the economy.
Contending that the balance of convenience was in favour
of the government, the AGF prayed the court to determine
“whether the respondents (NLC, TUC) have complied with
the laid-down condition precedent for embarking on
strike."
The AGF also prayed the court to determine "whether,
indeed, there exists in law and, in fact, the basis of which
the respondents’ total closure of the economy can be
justified”.
He told the court that the respondents met on Saturday
and issued a communique wherein they gave government
a three-day ultimatum to reverse the decision increasing
fuel price.
He said the respondents, aside from threatening to shut
down the country, if government failed to reverse the fuel
price increase, also threatened to close down all
government offices, seaports, airports and markets.
The AGF argued that ordinary and law-abiding citizens
would be subjected to hardship, if the respondents were
allowed to go ahead with their threat.
He said the government was left with no alternative but to
seek the intervention of the court.
Besides, Malami told the court that he got notice of the
communique on Sunday and quickly filed an originating
summons, a motion on notice and an ex-parte application
to determine whether NLC’s decision was justified in the
circumstance.
He insisted that “great and irreparable damage” would be
done against the nation and “ordinary and law-abiding
citizens”, should the court refuse the ex-parte application.
Though neither NLC nor TUC was represented in court,
Justice Adejumo granted the ex-parte motion, even as he
ordered the service of all the relevant court processes on
the respondents.
The restraining order against the respondents will lapse
after seven days.
However, Organised Labour and its civil society allies,
incensed by government’s decision to seek rederess at the
NIC in the mid
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