Corruption: Labour, CSO begin nationwide protests next week

Organised Labour and members of the Civil Society Organizations have concluded plans to commence a nationwide protests from next week
against the Federal Government and its institutions over the high level of corruption in the country.
This is even as it has asked its members to prepare for a showdown with Rivers State Government over the state’s refusal to commence negotiation for the new minimum wage.
The President of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), Quadri Olaleye, at the weekend told Daily Sun that the Congress along with its partners in the CSO have been mobilising for the proposed protests for over a month and are now ready to launch out.
“By the second week in August, we should be able to mobilise our people to move out to start that protest,” he said.
According to him, meetings have been held with executives across the states and the labour centre is currently on sensitisation level to prepare members and the general public to hold government accountable for the high level of corruption in the country.
Olaleye, said the purpose is to put the presidency and anti-corruption agencies on their toes to take immediate action that would stop other people from going into the act.
He lamented that all anti-corruption agencies have been silent for a while and have also been charged for corrupt practices, noting that if Nigerians continue to be complacent, others will see it as an opportunity to loot the nation’s treasury more.
The TUC boss said that the revelations at the National Assembly during the recent probe of the activities at the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and the collapse of the Managing Director, were nothing but a national disgrace.
Disturbed by alleged corrupt activities going on at the ministries, agencies and parastatals, the TUC President said labour would henceforth take serious action against government policies.
He charged President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure that the current cases of corruption are not swept under the carpet, and that the culprits are seriously dealt with as it is done in most climes.
He vowed, “We are going to call our members out to reclaim Nigeria from an insignificant few that have cornered the wealth of the country for themselves and their cronies.”
He expressed that it was inhuman for government to hike electricity tariff, Value Added Tax (VAT) and price of petrol only for the criminals in government to loot the money through award of illegal contracts.
He stated, “It shows that our politicians are not our friends. Their posture showed they are selfish people who don’t care for the masses, not having it in mind that we are the ones that voted them into office.
“We know the way labour was shouting on how government distributed the palliatives unevenly. Workers were laid off without pay. While many companies could not offer any palliative, government also could not give clear palliatives to Nigerian workers, with all that we faced during the pandemic.
“With all our efforts to ensure government gives three months free electricity, free water and some palliatives to the masses, we keep on hearing that they do not have budget for it, while our representatives were busy sharing money in NDDC.
“The intention of labour is that we have started mobilising. We are not only to mobilise Nigerian workers, we are going to work with civil society organisations and everyone in the country to say no to the level of corruption in our country.”
He opined that it would have been sensible if they have invested the looted funds in the country, as it would have been to the advantage of Nigerians.
“But after stealing all these money, they invest them abroad, and that is why we are not seeing any positive impact in our economy. They are not real business owners, they cannot set up manufacturing companies, even their structures and estates are all abroad. If they have put all these in Nigeria, we would not be talking about shortage of housing for the masses,” he said.
The labour leader wondered why should the National Assembly members leave the business of making laws to pursue contracts.
He added, “The lawmakers award contracts to themselves, receive payment upfront, but never move to site.
“How could all these happen in a region without potable water, good schools and road network? How could NDDC spend N122.9m for condolences when there is no good hospital for the sick? Why should this happen in a region where governors are saying they do not have the financial strength to pay the new minimum wage? Yet our leader, Muhammadu Buhari is celebrated worldwide as anti-corruption czar.”
Olaleye also revealed how politicians are using civil servants to perpetuate their nefarious act by looting the nation’s treasury.
He stated that because majority of the states are not paying workers salaries, and many states also have not started implementing the N30,000 new national minimum wage, many government workers are left with no choice but to aid processes of fraud for the politicians.
“Majority of the workers have families to take care of, school fees, rents and other pressing demands to meet, the reason they have to dance to the tune of the politicians,” he said.
On Rivers State, Olaleye said the governor has refused to dialogue with workers in the state over the minimum wage negotiation and hence with the ease on the lockdown, labour any moment from now would commence the suspended strike in the state.
He explained that there are other issues in the state, but when labour starts the strike and the protest ”the governor will have no choice than to dance to our tone.”
”I think now that the government is relaxing the lockdown, labour will also mobilize, we were supposed to embark on strike, but we suspended it because of the pandemic, now that the situation is moving towards normal, labour can appear in Rivers State at anytime to press on the governor our demands because it is our rights,” he added.