On Monday, the Organized Labor in Ogun ordered all employees on the state payroll to begin an indefinite strike on June 28.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), and Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC), which make up the leadership of organized labor, announced the strike to workers at the state secretariat’s arcade ground in Okemosan, Abeokuta.
On June 7, the workers sent Gov. Dapo Abiodun a letter with a seven-day deadline regarding concerns regarding the non-remittance of the 21 months’ worth of workers’ deductions.
Contributory pension, an examination of the Ogun Pension Law, and the prompt implementation of consequential modifications to the minimum pension as required by the 1999 Constitution were additional considerations.
InsightnaijaTV reports that the workers gathered and performed anti-government songs while criticizing the governor for not upholding the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) deal in 2020.
The state’s NLC chairman, Comrade Emmanuel Bankole, announced the strike action and stated that it had become necessary after numerous unsuccessful attempts to meet with the governor to discuss their situation.
All employees were told to skip work by Bankole, who was joined by the TUC and JNC chairs, Mr. Akeem Lasisi and Mr. Isa Olude.
He asserted that the strike, which will begin at midnight on Tuesday, will be complete and perpetual and that there would be no turning back until the governor complied with their demands.
“We are here today to take our destiny in our own hands. The leadership is ready.
“We must start a new beginning; we must tell them (government) that we are workers and not slaves. The time is now; a stop must be put to this.
“Our future and the future of the workers of Ogun state is in great jeopardy.
“Governance is a serious business and whoever that is not ready for it, I think it is time we told such persons to go home.
“Having given them enough time, but they are too busy to attend to us, maybe if we go home for some time, they will have time to attend to our matter.
“There is no going back. We have given them a long rope to draw.
“It is my opinion and my conviction that Ogun state workers are saying that we should embark on a full blown strike.
“We are embarking on indefinite strike from 12 midnight; let all the workers stay back at home. The implication is that nobody is expected at work tomorrow (June 28).
“Anyone who reports for duty tomorrow (Tuesday) is a traitor and it has never been well with a traitor,” Bankole declared.
As at the time insightnaijaTV filed this report, Mr. Tokunbo Talabi, Secretary to the State Government (SSG), and organized labor had a private meeting.
