2023: NLC blows hots to Presidential aspirants, others …workers, ordinary Nigerians will determine your fate

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday in Asaba warned Presidential aspirants and other politicians moving around the country that it would no longer be business as usual but rather workers would determine their fate in 2023 election.
Specifically, the NLC insisted that workers and Nigeria masses will change the narrative and work against the anti workers and anti-people politicians.
The NLC President, Ayuba Wabba in his address at the 5th Quadrennial Delegates Conference of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) on Tuesday emphasised that those politicians in the past that normally deceived Nigerians and presently maltreating their workers without any respect to collective bargaining but now declaring to lead the country, will not go far.
“We will not be deceived by political leaders that are not friendly to workers. We have some of them that since 2015 have not increased the salary of their workers, no collective bargaining, even to pay the National Minimum Wage of N30,000, they’ve refused to engage the workers,” he said.
Wabba said workers are now wise and will engage politically and scrutinize all aspirants both new and old to know their sincerity.
He charged the NUPENG members to go all out to collect their PVC and massively moved against politicians who have seen leadership as their birthright.
He said, “Workers will engage politically, if now as worker you’re yet to get your voter’s card, please do so immediately. 
We are going to have our structure and commissions  in all the 774 local governments and all the 36 states of the federation to engage political leaders on what they have to offer.”
The NLC President said as Nigeria is transiting both politically and economically in terms of fossil fuel, there are threat to jobs, more reason why labour would engage politically on the future of workers
He said, “The recently launched Nigeria Workers Charter of Demands calls for the rehabilitation of our refineries and the building of new ones. 
Local refineries will not only ensure satisfaction of domestic petroleum products demands but would also create jobs and ensure energy security for our country.  
“This is our own interpretation of deregulation. Unfortunately, the recent acute scarcity of refined petroleum products has once again validated our position that the policy of wholesale importation of refined petroleum products at the expense of local refining is a misnomer, unsustainable and a recipe for national chaos. We must use our votes in 2023 election to change this ugly narrative.”
Wabba stated that decent work is central to social engagement, hence the right of every workers to be unionised, adding that if the United State President, Joe Biden could say he’s not ashamed to be called President of workers, Nigeria workers would demand nothing less from the nation’s President in 2023.
Speaking further on the theme of the Conference, “Just Energy Transition: for Oil and Gas Workers, Social Welfare and Security”, the Congress President said it is very apt especially at this time when the world is witnessing a global energy crisis as a result of the Russian war against Ukraine. 
“Before the current war in Ukraine, our experience in the global energy supply chain is that of historically low oil prices, mass lay-offs as well as job destruction in energy intensive industries. All these events have boldened the quest for a Just Transition especially a transit from fossil fuel to greener energy,” he said.  
President of NUPENG, William Akporeha also condemned the deplorable state of the four refineries in the country.
He said, “We are really worried and concerned that a country with the resources and the population like Nigeria still dependent on importation, thereby exporting jobs and resources to other countries. The federal government should be up and doing to ensure that the refineries are working to reduce importation.
“Though we commend the present efforts of government to revamp the refineries, we however note that the process is becoming too slow and should therefore be expidited for the common good of all as Nigerians are running out of patient since present arrangement of importing petroleum products for local consumption have grave economic consequences.”