Posted by On Tuesday, members of the National Union of Electricity Employees in Osun State joined the warning strike called by the national leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress to express their opposition to the detrimental effects of the elimination of the fuel subsidy.
Some Osogbo Region Transmission Company of Nigeria employees were kept out of the premises, according to our correspondent who was in Osogbo verifying compliance with the NLC instruction.
Additionally, while some Osogbo commercial bank branches were closed to customers, others were open for business.
The state capital’s Old Garage, Ola-Iya, and Oke Fia Areas also had security presence.
The door to the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company’s Osogbo headquarters was sealed, and a staff member who went on the record on the condition of anonymity claimed that the employees there had also joined the warning strike.
Many Nigerians have been placed in hardship as a result of the removal of fuel subsidies, according to some electricity workers at the Osogbo Region Transmission Company of Nigeria. They expressed concern that there may be a disruption in power supply as a result of the strike.
However, several employees were at their assigned work stations at the Osun Government Secretariat in Osogbo.
Comrade Sodiq Adewale, vice president west of the National Union of Electricity Employees, told our correspondent that because his union is an affiliate of the NLC, its members obeyed with the order to put down their tools.
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He declared, “We are participating in the strike and are important stakeholders in the NLC.
“At this time, we are required to launch a warning strike that began today and will continue tomorrow in accordance with the NLC decision. As you can see, the entire location is secured. No one is entering, and as time passes, we will evaluate our acts at the individual action level.
“As at this point, we have complete compliance. No one is predicting a breakdown in power, yet our guys have left. Nothing is being tampered with by us.
“In general, consider the economics. Palliatives are being discussed, so it needs to happen quickly. How long will it take to put the process into practice? To reduce the suffering of the populace, they must expedite any processes they are working on.
Modupe Oyedele, the acting chairwoman of the Osun NLC, revealed in a separate interview with The PUNCH that the workers who returned to the Government Secretariat were TUC members.
However, she pointed out that all of the local government employees in the state followed the strike order.
Oyedele continued, “Our demand is about the spike of PMS which is making lives of Nigerians somewhat tough due to the loss of subsidy. Another example is the Federal Government’s interference in the NURTW issue, which led to the seizing of the organization’s national secretariat.
“Some union affiliates do not fall under the NLC because they chose not to sign up. TUC didn’t sign up. All employees in the municipal government joined the walkout. The NLC’s entire workforce is fully compliant with the strike action.