Telecom Hike: NLC Sets Date for Protest
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) is set to launch a decisive nationwide protest on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, in strong opposition to the proposed 50% increase in telecommunication tariffs.
In a resolute communiqué signed by NLC President Joe Ajaero, following the National Administrative Council (NAC) meeting in Abuja, the Congress declared that this one-day protest will occur across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Furthermore, the NLC sternly warned that state governments and employers who fail to implement the N70,000 national minimum wage and the necessary salary adjustments by the end of the first quarter will face serious ramifications.
“To express our vigorous opposition to this unjustifiable tariff hike, the NLC will carry out a nationwide mass rally on Tuesday, February 4, 2025. This rally is a clear warning about the dangers of imposing such an unfair increase on a population struggling to survive on a mere N70,000 minimum wage. The burden of soaring petrol prices, exorbitant food costs, rising electricity tariffs, and rampant inflation is already suffocating our citizens,” the communiqué stated.
The NLC has instructed all its affiliates and state councils to commence full mobilization for the protest, and civil society allies are strongly encouraged to join in this critical endeavor. We call upon all Nigerian workers, including those in the informal sector, and the general public to unite against this oppressive policy.
The NAC-in-session has demanded an immediate halt to the 50% tariff hike and is calling on the Federal Government, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and the National Assembly to engage in urgent and meaningful negotiations with relevant stakeholders to reassess the proposed tariff adjustments in light of the harsh economic realities facing Nigerians.
The NLC firmly characterizes the decision to impose a 50% increase in tariffs as not only insensitive but a blatant assault on Nigerian workers and the populace, who are already grappling with economic hardship inflicted by government policies beyond their control.
We will not remain silent. If these demands go unheeded, the NLC will escalate its actions, including a nationwide boycott of telecommunication services and widespread protests, which may involve a complete withdrawal of services to combat policies that deepen poverty and inequality.
Additionally, during the association’s National Leadership Retreat in Abuja, Mohammed Ibrahim, President of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), issued a stern warning to state governments and institutions that delay or manipulate wage payments.
Ibrahim, also the National Internal Auditor of the NLC, condemned the insincerity of certain state governments and employers for treating the wage increase merely as an “award” without genuine implementation.
“The national minimum wage is law, and payments must begin immediately nationwide. Instead, what we see are mere announcements without real action in many institutions and states,” he emphasized.
He noted that the proactive intervention of the NLC has already pressured some state governments into hastily signing agreements, many of which he described as “kangaroo agreements” that ultimately lack legitimacy.
“I am glad to see the NLC taking a strong stand on this issue. It was only after the NLC’s firm directive that any state government refusing to implement the national minimum wage would face a strike that we witnessed state governors scrambling to sign agreements. Unfortunately, many of these remain mere kangaroo agreements without real implementation.”
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