By Ita Williams, Calabar
The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) took to the streets across the country today to protest against the rising cost of living, economic decline, hunger, and other pressing issues.
However, the Cross River State branch of NLC ignored the warning from the State Police Command and carried out their protest outside their secretariat.
The peaceful protest which was held on Tuesday, started at the NLC Secretariat in Marian and continued along Murtala Mohammed Highway, eventually reaching the House of Assembly before proceeding to the Governor’s Office in Calabar. The protest finally concluded at the 11/11, Calabar the state capital.
The State Chairman of NLC, Cross River State Council, Comrade Gregory Olayi, highlighted the setback faced by civil servants and the masses, emphasizing the need for a peaceful demonstration.
He stated, “We are out today as directed by the National Nigeria Labour Congress to go out and protest against the hardship in the country, and that is what we did. We have moved from all corners of this state, visiting the House of Assembly and Governor’s Office, where we met with the deputy Governor to inform them of our struggles.”
Olayi continued, “The workers in Cross River State can no longer afford to feed themselves or even fuel their cars or motorcycles to get to work. There are numerous other issues we are facing, and tomorrow we will continue our protest.”
Addressing the gathered protesters, the Deputy Governor of Cross River State, Hon. Peter Odey, expressed his appreciation for their peaceful organization of the protest.
He owned up to the prevalence of hunger across the nation and reiterated the government’s commitment to prioritizing the well-being of the people. Odey mentioned that the absence of Governor Sen. Bassey Otu was due to his engagement with a Labour Committee in Abuja.
Odey assured the protesters, saying, “We will do our best to increase the minimum wage for workers. The current salary is insufficient to cope with the high cost of living. We have taken note of this issue. The government of Sen. Bassey Otu is dedicated to addressing the plights of workers in Cross River State. I will join you in conveying your concerns to the committee in Abuja and the President of Nigeria.”
He also urged the protesters to remain vigilant and not allow any opportunistic individuals to hijack the peaceful protest for their gain.
The NLC’s protest against economic hardship and the rising cost of living has garnered significant attention nationwide. Workers in various sectors are struggling to make ends meet due to soaring prices of goods and commodities. The NLC hopes that their protest will bring attention to the challenges faced by workers and prompt the government to take action.
The increasing cost of living has put a tremendous strain on workers, affecting their ability to meet basic needs, such as food and transportation. The NLC aims to highlight these issues and push for an increase in the minimum wage to provide workers with better economic stability.
As the protest continues, the NLC hopes that through their peaceful demonstration and advocacy, their voices will be heard, and measures will be taken to alleviate the economic hardships faced by workers across the country.
A trader who sales food stuff at the Watt market who also joined in the protest, Mrs. Mary Efam, said, “How can the President toy with the only source of the nation’s income, without looking inward, petroleum is everything, toy with the sector, everything will spoil, how is he going to rescue the nation now” may God help Nigeria” that is my prayer”
A businessman, Mr. Francis Abam in his opinion, said, “The way the country is going I am afraid, if it will ever return to normalcy again, we can no longer do business again, everything has gone more than 100%, we have never experienced this since after independent, we’re are we going from here, how can we say we buy 3-cups of Garry N500, we pity our children yet unborn, Government must rise and fix it before it gets out of hand” Abam said.
Also speaking during the protests, a 300-level student of UNICAL, who will not want his name mentioned in the news, said, “Nigerian people are patient enough, we have endured this government for a longer month, the cat will run out of the bag one day, we all know the story, it will not be easy to catch back the cat” so this government must see how they will repair the economy, work on the price control, basically everything has gone wrong, President Tinubu must go to work so that Nigeria will not become a complete failed state because gradually the country is failing”
