The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has opposed the government’s re-introduction of toll gates on federal roads in poor conditions.
The labour also condemned the planned 65% increase in electricity and 50% increase in telecommunication tariffs.
These were key resolutions reached at yesterday’s National Administrative Council (NAC) meeting of the TUC in Abuja.
Speaking to journalists at the end of the meeting, TUC president Festus Osifo expressed the congress’s concerns over recent government policies, which he said are worsening economic hardships for Nigerian workers and the masses.
The TUC rejected the toll gates on selected federal roads, arguing that it would be unfair to demand payment for roads in severe disrepair.
The labour centre insisted that roads must first be rehabilitated to international standards before any tolling discussion can occur.
The TUC also criticised the proposed 65% increase in electricity tariffs, describing it as an unjustified economic burden on citizens already struggling with high living costs.
The NAC also addressed the planned 50% increase in telecom tariffs, fully supporting the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in rejecting the move.
Osifo said, “The NAC deliberated on the proposed introduction of toll gates on selected federal roads and strongly condemned it. While we acknowledge that tolling is a globally recognised method of generating revenue for road maintenance, imposing tolls on unpaved, dilapidated, and pothole-ridden roads is unacceptable.
The NAC views this as an insult to Nigerians, who are being asked to pay tolls on roads in total disrepair. Our highways are death traps, unsafe, abandoned, and filled with potholes. The government is resorting to shameless extortion rather than fulfilling its responsibility to fix and maintain these roads”.
He continued, “The congress, therefore, demands that all roads earmarked for tolling must first be fixed, properly tarred, and repaired to international standards before any discussion on tolling can be entertained.
Similarly, the NAC, on behalf of Congress, strongly condemns the proposed 65% increase in electricity tariffs. It is alarming that the government is considering this hike when the previous increment has already inflicted severe hardship on citizens”.
“The NAC, on behalf of the congress, strongly advises the government to refrain from introducing policies that would further exacerbate the economic hardship faced by hardworking Nigerians.
If the administration insists on implementing these policies, the TUC will have no choice but to mobilise the working class, civil society, and the oppressed masses for a nationwide action; this level of exploitation is unacceptable”.
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