Those who Have Ears Let them Hear!
Address Delivered by the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Abdulwaheed Ibrahim Omar at the opening ceremony of the 2011 Harmattan School held at Endwell Hotel Conference Hotel, Kaduna on 14th November 2011

Protocols

Permit me to join our able State Council Chair to welcome you all to this occasion.
Let me begin by paying tribute to our compatriots who were killed in recent bombings in Damaturu, Potiskum and Maiduguri. May God grant them eternal rest.
Comrades, education is the bed rock of the NLC’s programmes.  In September 2011 I was at the Workers Solidarity Center in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State to participate at the opening ceremony of the 2011 Rain School.  There, I stated that the mission of the current NLC Executive is to refocus and consolidate the progress made in the last four years.  A retreat was held in June 2011 with focus on implementing the New Minimum Wage and General Wage Review, and meeting the challenges of the National Economy, Employment and policy engagement.  I stated that we are also committed to workers education and empowerment, New Unionism, the continued struggle for Democratic consolidation, good governance and the anti corruption struggle. The theme of this year’s Harmattan school: Building National Integration and Sustainable Development: the Role of Labour and civil society, is partly informed by our resolve to implement the six point Agenda of the Congress.
The 2011 Harmattan School is programmed to provide training for participants and equip them with the intellectual resource base to serve their members and build integration at the workplace and in the entire Nigerian nation.
The Harmattan School provides training for trade union leaders and activists just as the NLC Rain School. As complement to the two national schools, there is the State Level Schools, “Basic Trade Union Education” programme and the Labour Law and Labour Relations programme which runs in collaboration with the University of Jos.
Ladies, Gentlemen and Comrades, clearly, insecurity is a major challenge and unfortunately, the Federal Government has by acts of omission and commission become part of the country’s insecurity challenges.
The Government has been unable, and does not even seem interested in providing shelter, food, healthcare, water or education for the people.   Despite this, it has embarked on poverty-inducing programmes and measures that can only push the populace to the wall and provoke a reaction by a long suffering populace.
A you all know, the NLC and TUC signed an agreement with the Federal Government on July 19, 2011 on the implementation of the N18,000 Minimum Wage.   It was agreed that the implementation will commerce from August 2011 with arrears paid from March 23, 2011.  But as I speak to you four months later, the Federal Government has failed, or refused to implement this agreement. It appears that elements within Government with suicidal instincts want to provoke a general strike and mass protests on this issue.
These elements also seem to be responsible for other provocative Government programmes such as a proposal to hike electricity tariff by 100 percent, re-impose toll-gates for unmotorable roads, and through a dubious constitutional amendment, annul the National Minimum Wage so that States and private employers can pay starvation wages.  The NLC will never allow this to happen.
The President Goodluck Jonathan administration is also deliberately devaluing the currency in order to devalue the N18,000 National Minimum Wage and as part of its poverty-inducing measures.  As we have stated elsewhere, Government’s insistence to hike fuel prices by 120 percent will further complicate matters for a hungry citizenry that has to cope with growing mass unemployment and a nonexistent social security. This will be an invitation to open revolt by the citizenry and the NLC will be there to lead the people.  The on-going repression of the Nigeria Youth Council and students by President Jonathan’s security goons, and attempts to suppress their protests against the IMF/World Bank—dictated removal of fuel subsidy will fail.  In fact, a resort to dictatorship will spell doom for this administration.
It is in this wise the Labour Movement demands that the Jonathan Administration withdraws the armed soldiers it sent this morning to occupy the corporate Headquarters of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) the Katampe, Wuse Zone 4 and Apo Transmission Stations in Abuja, the Olorunsogo centre, Ondo State, Ayede, the Egbin Power Station, the National Control Centre, Oshogbo and the Oshogbo Work Centre.
The militarization of the electricity centres is an impotent and vain attempt by Government to force the deregulation of the PHCN.  As you might know, there are on-going negotiations between the Federal Government and Electricity Workers on Power reform in the country.  The next round of negotiations is scheduled to hold on November 22, 2011.
To send armed soldiers to occupy electricity installations is therefore a calculated attempt to stall the negotiations and impose a pre-determined solution that will see the power sector sold as scrap to serving ministers and other cronies of the Federal Government.  The industrial relations system must be made to work rather than Government and employers resorting to brute force.
Labour warns our political elites that their frequent use of the armed forces against the civil populace portend danger to our democratic survival and advises that the armed forces should be used only as a last resort, but never in an industrial relations matter.   The NLC has already instructed electricity workers in the country that if the combat ready troops sent to their installation resorts to any form of brutality, they should vacate such premises until Government can provide a safe and conducive atmosphere for work.
The NLC once again, appeals to Government to be accountable and sensitive to the basic needs of the Nigerian people.  We again appeal to the Jonathan administration not to toy with the prices of petroleum products as this will definitely lead to a conflagration in the country.  The Congress advises the Federal and State Governments to realize that there can be no force in the country greater than the Nigerian people from whom all power must flow. Those who have ears, let them heed this advice.
As for the NLC, we shall do all that is constitutional to defend the basic rights and interests of the Nigerian worker and people, and safeguard the future of our children.
I wish to sincerely thank the affiliate unions of the NLC, invited guests and our international sister labour organizations and their institutions for solidarizing with us by attending our programmes. I also want to commend the National Secretariat of the NLC, and in particular, the Education Department for the efforts put into making sure that, the 2011 Harmattan School is a success.
Our commendation also goes to our team of Facilitators drawn from the affiliate unions for their commitment and efforts in making sure that the educational activities of Congress are sustained, improved upon and implemented.
To the Government and people of Kaduna State, we express our appreciation for playing host to the third Harmattan School to be hosted in the state, and we look forward to your continued support.
Finally, we wish to express our profound appreciation to our Partners, the Canadian Labour Congress,  Friedrich Ebert Foundation, PenCom and Trust Fund for their support and solidarity in sustaining the School. We highly appreciate your continued partnership.

Thank you for your attention.