Representatives of the organised labour on Friday evening stormed out of a meeting with the Presidential Steering Committee on subsidy palliatives scheduled to hold at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The President of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, had led his delegation to the Chief of Staff’s office, the meeting venue at about 5 pm but were soon spotted exiting the building.
The Steering Committee met the government delegation on Wednesday, where the two parties agreed to reconvene on Friday to get a brief from the FG’s subcommittees on Mass Transit, Compressed Natural Gas, and Cash Transfer.
The Steering Committee was set up by the Federal Government to draw up intervention plans to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal on Nigerians.
But on their way out, the irate labour members accused the federal government of using the meetings as a ploy to deceive Nigerians.
“They are not prepared for the meeting. That’s the truth,” a member of the Steering Committee from labour who spoke anonymously said.
“They are using cover to deceive Nigerians. There are supposed to be three subcommittees, the mass transit subcommittee, the CNG, and the cash transfer, to brief us, the steering committee, but the government was not prepared for the meeting,” the source accused the government.
According to the labour representative, “In their (FG’s) introductory remarks, they made excuses and wanted the meeting to continue; the meeting did not form a quorum. We are a people that operate on the basis of process. So, if there’s no quorum in a meeting, what do you do? You will adjourn for lack of quorum.
“There was nobody to meet with. The Chief of Staff was not there; they are taking us like small children.”
“So, they are not prepared for the meeting. That’s the truth,” he said, maintaining that the government representatives insisted that the meeting proceed even though no quorum was formed.
