PERESSA demands set up of panel of enquiry over raid of  NLC head office, Abuja

By allcitynews.ng

The Precision, Electrical and Related Equipment Senior Staff Association (PERESSA) has condemned the recent raid of Nigeria Labour Congress, head office, Abuja.

Even as the union demanded for setting up of democratic panel of enquiry to unravel the incident.

PERESSA described the invasion as serious attack on the democratic rights of workers in the entire trade unions in Nigeria.

The President, Comrade Rufus

We strongly hold that the search for a foreigner in bookshop as the reason given by the inspector General of Police for the invasion of labour House is untenable and unacceptable. We demand an immediate setting up of an independent and transparent panel of inquiry that will involve representatives of the NLC and TUC as well as civil society and human rights community to investigate the raid.
PERESSA in solidarity with the Nigeria Labour Congress demands a public apology from the Federal Government and the Nigeria Police. We also demand that all damaged properties, the security agents perpetrated must be adequately returned, fixed, and compensated.

The President, Comrade Rufus Olusesan with General Secretary, Comrade Dele Ojo, who made this known to allcitynews.ng pointed that “We also demand that all books, publications, labour materials and others the security agents seized, damaged and stole must be fully returned or replaced.

“For us in PERESSA, this is an abuse of power the Tinubu-led government is perpetrating. Not only that, we also suspect that invading the private space of a trade unions Centre is political reasons, they haven’t come out publicly to say.”

Similarly Olusesan and Ojo stressed that “As a union, we are convinced that this raid is tied to the #Endbadgovernance protest that took place in different parts of the country. The security agency attacks of the NLC Secretariat were apparently following suspicion of the NLC involvement in the protest. Of course, NLC didn’t take active participation in the action but called on the government to meet the demands of protesters and condemned the repression including killing and arrest of protesters.

“However, we are displeased with the Tinubu-led government that has imposed more economic hardship on workers and all Nigerian working people since the removal of the oil subsidy, floating and devaluation of Naira and other neo -liberal policies. We are also in support of the demands of the nationwide peaceful protest.”

Furthermore, the duo claimed that “this economic hardship on Nigerians is what led to the 10 – day protest in Lagos, Abuja, Oyo,Osun, Kano, Kaduna, Rivers and other parts of the federation . The costs of living, staple foods, and other commodities in the market have gone astronomically high. This is in spite of the government’s excuses   that inflation has come down a bit. However, the protest disagrees with the government propaganda.

“For us as a union, we support the call for the reversal of petrol price and other anti-poor economic policies to the pre-May 29, 2023 price President Tinubu met it.

“Reversal of electricity tariff, improved living conditions, and other demands that are related to what the two labours centres have been demanding. PERESSA also join other unions to condemn the attacks on protesters across the country.”

Likewise the union said “we believe it is the constitutional rights of Nigerians to protest peacefully as enshrined in sections 38, 39, 40, 41, and 42 of the 1999 constitution amended.

“In PERESSA, we are equally using this medium to demand for the immediate release of all trade unionists, protesters, civil society activists, and other well-meaning Nigerians arrested and detained unlawfully in the course of the #EndBadGovernance protest and all trumped-up charges levelled against them must be dropped.

“We believe it is the right of Nigerians to associate, organize, and protest. Protest is a right and the federal government and the Police must respect it accordingly.”

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