Contrary to the expectations of thousands of Nigerian workers who thronged the Eagle Square, Abuja to mark this year’s May Day celebration, President Muhammadu Buhari, who was expected to grace the event as the Guest of Honour was conspicuously absent.
Some of the labour leaders who spoke with journalists on the sidelines of the occasion described the action of the president as disappointing.
Not even the presence of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, at the event could assuage the feelings of the workers over the president’s absence.
Deputy President, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Chairman 2016 May Day celebration, Peter Adeyemi, stated that it was disappointing for Buhari to scorn the opportunity to show gratitude to the Nigerian workers who formed the bulk of the people that voted for him.
He noted: “I am very disappointed about the absence of Mr. President at this occasion. I am extremely disappointed in the sense that the bulk of those who craved for change, the positive change that contributed towards his being voted into the office, are the Nigerian workers.
“While he was still campaigning to be made the president of this country, he had the time to attend the delegates’ conference of the NLC. It is, therefore, worrisome that the first major Workers’ Day after his election into office, he didn’t have time to be physically present. It means he played politics with the Nigerian workers.
“Buhari sought our mandate because he needed it at that time, but after he had got, he didn’t think that we are important. I am very disappointed.” A
lso, Deputy Secretary General, Medical and Health Workers’ Union, Baba Ayebola, said the action of Mr. President was a reflection of the behaviour of the ruling class.
“The action of Mr. President shows the true reflection of any section of the ruling class. When they need us, they will look for us. After that, they see us as mere cannon fodders that can be used for their programmes and policies.”
In the same vein, the president, Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Ibrahim Khaleel, lamented that the president missed the opportunity to get standing ovation from the Nigerian workers by his absence.
Khaleel said: “I am terribly disappointed. When I woke this morning and started preparing for this May Day, I was so sure that President Buhari would grace the occasion considering the huge support he got in the 2015 general elections.
“The hope of Nigerian workers was dashed by his failure to be at the event.”
Meanwhile, the absence of the president did not diminish the status of the occasion, as speakers after speakers who took to the podium commented on the economic policies of government, corruption and other pressing national issues.
NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, in his speech, commended the present administration for its efforts in tackling the issues of corruption, insurgency, inadequate power, shortage of petroleum products and the dwindling fortunes of the nation’s education sector.
Wabba warned that the war against insurgency could not be said to have been successfully fought without the rescue of over 200 abducted Chibok girls and the reintegration of the internally displaced persons.
In particular, Wabba urged the President to come up with a marshal plan for the reconstruction of the devastated infrastructure of the geo-political zone, which is the hot bed of the insurgents.
He also expressed the readiness of the congress to engage the Buhari administration on how it would deliver on its promise of creating three million jobs annually.
His words: “The ruling APC government, in its manifestos, promised to create three million jobs annually. We have waited one year for the government to bring out its blueprints on how it intends to go about achieving this.
“Congress will seek audience with Mr. President to get more information on this important matter. On our part as workers, we will be prepared and willing to contribute to any effort to create a ‘Job Creation Fund’ nationally to tackle this problem.”
He said congress is eagerly waiting for government to kick-start the negotiation process on the N56,000 proposal as new minimum wage.
According to him, the proposal is in line with the National Minimum Wage Act, which stipulates a five-year re-opener clause for a new negotiation.
In his address, the President, Trade Union Congress (TUC), Bobboi Kaigama, lamented the long years of pillage of the nation’s resources by a greedy few.
While commenting on the theme of this year’s May Day celebration, “The Working Class and the Quest for Socio-Economic Revival,” Kaigama called on workers to take the avenue of the day to reflect on how to bring an ailing nation to life.
He said: “Wherever I am chanced to speak, I am quick to affirm that Nigeria is a great nation. The entire world acknowledges that fact. But many of our people have lost hope due to decades of rape of the national treasury by a privileged few.
“Yes we are a great nation, but greatness is never achieved on a platter of gold. It is earned and must be consciously sustained. As a nation, we are endowed with enormous natural resources; yet grope in the darkness of poverty and underdevelopment.
“We produce crude oil, but sleep at filling stations to buy the by-products therefrom. As we celebrate Workers’ Day 2016, we must all resolve to put our acts together if we must revive our ailing nation.” Addressing the workers, Ngige stressed the importance of the working class to the development of the nation.
“The downturn in the revenue profile of the government, growing unemployment, especially among the youths, closure of some industries due to unfavourable economic climate and incessant industrial actions in key sectors of our national economy, are some of the realities we must confront and overcome if this nation must be on its path to sustainable economic prosperity and growth,” he said.
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