Lagos State governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has appealed to the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) not to embark on its planned strike.
The NLC has threatened to begin a nationwide strike on Wednesday, following the increase in the pump price of petrol after President Bola Tinubu’s announcement the termination of fuel subsidy regime.
However, Governor Sanwo-Olu urged the labour union to shelve the planned action, suggesting that the NLC and the Federal government should liaise to fashion out ways to cushion the impact of the removal.
“So, I want to plead with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) that it should not turn it into a political thing because we are beginning to see that. The leadership should indeed know that they are leading a pack of people and they need to restrain themselves,” he said on Sunday, after a post-inauguration “Thanksgiving Service” at the Cathedral Church of Christ in Marina, Lagos.
“Let us be patient; let us work around [issues around subsidy removal]. NNPCL has said to us that there is more than enough petrol to go round. So, there is no need for us to heat up the polity. Any strike would not solve anything. It will certainly not be the issue. The point would be: ‘How are we going to ensure that there is a turnaround in our economy that we can live?’”
Sanwo-Olu said that Tinubu is working out plans to mitigate the effects of the subsidy removal, noting that Lagos State has started rolling out modalities for that.
“He (Tinubu) has mentioned something around better ways. We have started that in Lagos State. We pride ourselves that we have started it in January. Other parts of the country can also do the same. So, there is no need for us to get political. It is governance now and people want to see purposeful governance. Let the man (Tinubu) settle down. He has said he will form a team that would take the country out of poverty.”