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Flights grounded as unions protest against the failure of President Tinubu’s government to agree on minimum wage. Several passengers at the domestic wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja were stranded on Monday.
Nigeria’s main labour unions have shut down the national grid and disrupted airline operations as they began an indefinite strike over the government’s failure to agree on a minimum wage. The entrance to the departure hall was under lock and key, while some frustrated passengers were seen seated on the ground outside the airport premises. The strike is the fourth by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), two of the country’s biggest unions, since President Bola Tinubu took office last year.
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) said union members drove away operators at the country’s power control rooms and shut down at least six substations, which eventually shut the national grid 2.19am.
The Nigerian airline Ibom Air said it was suspending flights until further notice due to the strike, while another, United Nigeria, said airports across the country had been shut down and that striking workers had permitted none of its flights to operate. Electricity and aviation unions said on Monday they had directed their workers to withdraw their services in compliance with the indefinite strike.
Since taking office, Tinubu has embarked on a bold programme of reforms, which has fuelled a rise in inflation to an almost 30-year high and worsened a cost-of-living crisis in Africa’s most populous country. He has been under pressure from unions to offer relief to households and small businesses after scrapping subsidies on petrol, which kept fuel cheap but cost the government USD 10bn last year.
Unions declared an indefinite strike on Friday after talks for a new minimum wage meant to cushion the impact of reforms collapsed. They said the strike would last until a new minimum wage was in place. The TCN said it was making efforts to recover and stabilise the national grid but unions were obstructing grid recovery nationwide.
Unions have also demanded a reversal of a rise in the electricity tariff introduced last month for better-off consumers who use the most power, as the government tries to wean the economy off subsidies. On Thursday, Nigeria’s privatisation body said the country had secured a World Bank loan of USD 500m for its electricity sector.
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The unions expect numerous other workers’ unions, including those of doctors, university lecturers, airport workers, and electricity workers to join in. The General Secretary of NLC, Emmanuel Ugboaja emphasised the importance of ensuring a comprehensive closure of all workplaces, noting that the success of the strike hinged on the collective determination and resolve of their members.
