The Human Rights Monitoring Agenda (HURMA) call on both government and the Organized Labour Union to reconsider certain steps and as well be completely sincere in their actions.
HURMA do not see a nationwide strike action as anything good for the country at this critical time, rather it would only increase the suffering of the poor masses while the top government officials would be least affected.
Their private hospitals would be functioning and they can travel out for medical attention, as usual while the poor would be dying due to the non functioning of the general hospital facilities.
It is important that the Organised Labour Union should specially consider facilities like Hospitals, where people’s lives are being daily attended to and Court, in event of any mass action.
Our members often relate with these offices in their strive to attend to the needs of the indigent and so we can say categorically that any strike action would only make life more difficult and unbearable to many of those in critical and almost neglected conditions.
We appeal to government to listen to the demands of workers and try to avoid any strike action because its effect on the economy would be magnanimous base on the loose we suffer.
It is also important that Nigeria Govt. should open its books and be more transparent for workers to see what is exactly in the purse, so as to be more realistic in their demand.
This is as a result of the reality we are presently facing in the country where many States can not afford the minimum wage and are owing workers’ salary.
A people’s government that is ready to ensure that lives of workers and the oppressed are well catered for, would be transparent in its policies and dealings to carry all its constituent organs along, including workers.
This would however shape the perception of the workers in making reasonable demands.
Finally, it highly disheartened that the Nigerian workers do not have any independent political party to establish it philosophy. The organised Labour Union should rise to this task so as not to always appeared to be sponsored instrument of destruction by opposition parties, each time they call on workers for action.
The present Labour Party is nothing but an instrument made readily available for the highest bidder among the bourgeois capitalist ruling elites.
The Ondo state game between the PDP and Mimiko with Labour Party is a clear evidence that Nigerian workers are far from a realistic organised body fit to pursue a political agenda for the ultimate liberation of the oppressed workers from all forms of exploitation and oppression.
This is our clear position.
Comrade Buna Olaitan Isiak
Executive Director
Human Rights Monitoring Agenda (HURMA)
humanrightsmonitors@yahoo.com
08038040123, 09021276592