The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), Oyo State chapter, have picketed the offices of the Nigerian Electricity Regulation Commission (NERC) and Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) over hikes in electricity tariffs in the country.
Oyo NLC Chairman, Comrade Kayode Martins
dressing members during the picketing
Some of the offices picketed by the organized labour are NERC office at Iyaganku, IBEDC Headquarters at Ring Road, its regional headquarters at Oluyole, the IBEDC Staff Development Centre at Iyaganku, and the IBEDC Business Units at Dugbe Apata.
Also picketed by the Union was the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) at Jericho in Ibadan.
The unions demanded a total reversal of the tariff by the federal government, or else the offices will be shut down until it's request is granted.
The picketing action was monitored by men and officers of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), who had followed them since 7:50 a.m. when they started.
Officers, staff, and consumers were seen chasing out of the buildings in line with the directive of the national secretariat of the unions, who carried different placards with various inscriptions.
Addressing the journalists in Ibadan, Oyo State NLC Chairman, Comrade Kayode Martins, disclosed that Nigerians cannot continue to live in suffering, saying that they are tired of the inhuman policies of the federal government.
The NLC Chairman said that the picketing is just to pass a message to the IBEDC and NERC as regards the hike in the tariff of electricity, noting that Nigerians are already facing epileptic power supply and paying for what they are not enjoying.
"We are here today because we are fed up with the inhuman policies being rolled out by our leaders. As of today, living in Nigeria has become a crime. We find it difficult to relate to other countries. Now we are locked in, enslaved inside our own father's land. Sometimes ago, the federal government removed subsidies on everything, making life unbearable for Nigerian citizens.
"We are here to pass a message to the IBEDC and NERC concerning the hike in the price of electricity supply. Already, we are enjoying the epileptic supply of electricity, but now they are saying we still have to pay more for what we are enjoying.
"We are here today to say enough is enough; they should please let the poor breadth in this country. We are begging, we are wailing, and we are crying to them to let the poor breadth; that is the only thing we are agitating for.
Also in her address, Comrade Ranti Oluwemimo, who is the Vice Chairman of TUC in Oyo State, said that many people, particularly the youth, are willing to leave the country because the leaders have made it inhabitable for them.
He queried President Bola Tinubu for not putting necessary measures in place before removing the subsidy, saying that all the Union wants is the total reversal of the price of electricity.
"When they wanted to contest, they promised us a good life; they promised us a better life; they said there would be a change; we voted them in, and they are making life difficult for us. Enough of this. Things must come back to normal."
Comrade Abiodun Bamgboye, who spoke on behalf of the Campaign for Democratic and Workers' Rights (CDWR), advised the federal government to reverse the current hike in the price of electricity.
He disclosed that there is no justification for the hike in the electricity tariff because there is nothing that has shown that the federal government is subsidizing the electricity.
"We did not see any justification for this hike in the price of electricity, because to us, there is nothing that has shown that there have been subsidies. Electricity has not been available to Nigerians, so where does the subsidy come from or who are the people who have been receiving or benefiting from it? I think the argument around subsidy is just a plot to compound the economic hardship that the Nigerian people are going through at this material point in time.
"We feel that that is uncalled for, and that's why we are calling on the federal government to reverse the current hike in the price of electricity."
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