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By Bimbola Oyesola
Organised labour, yesterday, condemned plan to increase electricity tariff by the Federal Government.
It vowed to resist any further increment in the pump price of petroleum products by the authority.
Reacting to the news which emanated on Saturday that the 11 power Distribution Companies have gotten approval from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to slightly increase electricity tariff from tomorrow, Labour said it would not be acceptable.
The electricity increase information, however, was confirmed through a notification to customers from the Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) dated August 25, 2021.
The notice signed by the General Manager, Loss Reduction at EKEDC, Olumide Anthony-Jerome, said: “This is to officially notify you that there will be an increase in electricity tariff with effect from September 1, 2021. This increase is as a result of the nationwide mandate to implement the Service-Based Tariff (SBT) approved by our regulators, NERC.”
The notice said the increase will be reflected on the energy bill for October which will represent energy consumption for September 2021.
But the President of the National Union of Chemical Footwear Rubber Leather and Non-Metallic Products Employees and the National Auditor, Nigeria Labour Congress, Goke Olatunji, speaking during the 29th Industrial Relations Seminar of the union in Ibadan, Oyo State, said labour would not fold its hands and allow workers impoverished further.
“Increasing electricity tariff is a wrong action at this time. Government should not attempt to increase pump price. If they do it, labour will resist it,” he said.
He lamented that workers have always been at the receiving end of government inconsistent policies.
“The effects of socio-economic crises and COVID-19 pandemic on industrial relations are numerous and multi-faceted in nature. One of these effects has to do with unprecedented job losses arising from redundancy exercise and factories closure.
“Another effect is that of slash in salary and other packages of workers and while still struggling through all these, government ways have always been to further compound our problems through increase in prices of electricity and pump price of petroleum products,” he said.
