*Picket NERC, IBEDC, TCN, Offices In Ibadan
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 hike in electricity tariff.
Some of the offices picketed by the organized labour are NERC, Iyaganku, IBEDC Headquarters at Ring Road, its Regional Headquarters at Oluyole, IBEDC Staff Development Centre, Iyaganku and IBEDC Business Units at Dugbe and Apata.
Also picketed by the Unions was the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Jericho.
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 acceded to.
The picketing action was monitored by men and officers of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), who followed them since 7:50am when they started.
Officers, staff and consumers were seeing chasing out of the buildings in line with 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 can not continue to live in suffering, saying that they are tired of inhuman policies of the federal government.
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 of inhuman policies being rolled out by our leaders, as of today, to live in Nigeria has become a crime, we find it difficult to relate with other countries, now we are locked in, enslaved inside our own father’s land. Sometimes ago, federal government removed subsidy on everything making life unbearable for Nigeria citizens.
“We are here to pass a message to the IBEDC and NERC concerning the hike in price of electricity supply. Already we are enjoying epileptic supply of electricity, 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, 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 good life, they promised us 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 Campaign for Democratic and Workers’ Right (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 have 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 have shown that there have been subsidy. Electricity has not been available to Nigerians and so, where does the subsidy come from or who are people who have been receiving or benefiting it. I think the argument around subsidy is just a plot to compound the economic hardship that the Nigeria 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 on the need to reverse the current hike in the price of electricity.”
