The Nigeria Labour Congress says it will embark on a nationwide strike from August 14 if the contemptuous court summons is not withdrawn by the Federal Ministry of Justice.

On Thursday, NLC president Joe Ajaero said this in a communique jointly signed with Mr Emmanuel Ugboaja, General Secretary of NLC.

The communique was issued at the end of the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the NLC. 

Organised labour had protested nationwide against President Bola Tinubu’s government’s anti-poor policies, especially the subsidy removal that had brought untold hardship to Nigerians.

The justice ministry had, through the National Industrial Court, issued the leadership of organised labour summons on contempt of court for protesting.

Mr Ajaero said that NEC observed the justice ministry through the court and had continued to allow itself to be used as a vehicle to truncate the dominance of the tenets of democracy and silence the voices of Nigerian workers.

”NEC-in-session resolved to go on total strike across the country any day labour leaders are summoned to court by the government through the NICN. To demand the immediate withdrawal of this litigious terrorism by the Federal Ministry of Justice before the end of work Friday, the 11th of August,” stated Mr Ajaero.

The NLC leader added, “To embark on a nationwide comprehensive strike beginning August 14 if this contemptuous court summons is not withdrawn by whosoever initiated it.”

The NLC president also said the union was committed to maintaining the required vigilance to hold the government accountable for its assurances and governance in general.

Mr Ajaero added that the union’s NEC was committed to the terminal date of August 19, within which the issues around the petrol price hike will be agreed given the assurances of the president and the National Assembly.

Through the justice ministry, the federal government had sternly warned in a statement on 26 July that the planned strike by the union would be a contempt of court, an offence punishable by imprisonment.

The ministry restated on Monday that the order issued by the National Industrial Court in Abuja on 5 June had stopped not just strikes but any form of industrial action organised to oppose the removal of fuel subsidy.

Following Wednesday’s protest by the labour unions, the justice ministry approached the industrial court to commence a contempt suit against the labour leaders.

The ministry filed a notice of consequences of disobedience to the court’s order, also known as Form 48, the first of the two stages of a contempt suit.

The notice was addressed to the NLC president, deputy presidents Audu Aruba, Adeyanju Adewale, and Kabiru Sani; general secretary Emmanuel Ugboaja; TUC president Festus Usifo and chief executive Nuhu Toro.

(NAN)