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From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has thrown its weight behind striking workers in Osun State, demanding the immediate release of withheld local government allocations and accusing the Federal Government of selectively obeying court judgments.
The Congress said the continued withholding of the funds had crippled governance at the local government level, with serious consequences for service delivery and workers’ welfare.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by its Acting General Secretary, Benson Upah, the NLC described the continued seizure of the allocations as unjustifiable, accusing the Federal Government of resorting to intimidation and arm-twisting in a matter that should be governed by the rule of law.
The labour centre insisted that the Federal Government could not choose which court decisions to obey, warning that such conduct was unacceptable in a democracy.
“We express solidarity with the striking workers of Osun State in pursuit of the release of the withheld local government funds and urge the federal government authorities to release those funds without further delay.
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“The non-release of these funds has caused considerable damage to governance at the local government council level with collateral implications. “There is no justification whatsoever for the continued seizure of these funds other than to prove the point that the federal government is above the law,” the statement read.
The Congress further criticised what it described as the Federal Government’s disregard for judicial decisions, maintaining that respect for the rule of law must remain a fundamental obligation of all tiers of government.
“However, we do not need this level of intimidation or arm-twisting in a democracy. The federal government cannot cherry-pick which decisions of courts to obey and which it will not,” it stated.
The NLC also commended the striking workers for maintaining peace and discipline in the course of their agitation, urging them not to allow their legitimate demands to degenerate into violence or disorder.
“We commend the Osun workers for conducting themselves with utmost decorum in prosecuting this action, and we urge them to keep it so… always peaceful.”
The Congress reiterated its solidarity with the workers and called for the immediate release of the allocations to restore effective governance at the grassroots.
