Nigerian unions call off nationwide strike

Nigeria government deployed soldiers to check labour and civil societies protesting against the scrapping of oil subsidies in the Ojota district of Lagos yesterday

Nigerian unions ended a week-old nationwide strike yesterday after the president agreed to lower petrol prices, while security forces shot into the air and fired tear gas to disperse protesters.
A dispute over a sharp hike in fuel costs had crippled Africa’s most populous nation and largest oil producer, compounding the government’s problems as it has also faces a wave of bloody Islamist attacks.
Nigeria Labour Congress chief Abdulwahed Omar yesterday ended the industrial action, telling a press conference: “Labour and its allies formally announce the suspension of the strike, mass rallies and protests across the country.”
“With the experiences of the past eight days, we are sure that no government or institution will take Nigerians for granted again.”
Union officials said they remained in disagreement with the petrol price even after the decrease, but were ready to engage in further negotiations with government representatives.
President Goodluck Jonathan in an early-morning broadcast announced a roughly one-third cut in pump prices in a partial concession to protesters after the recent scrapping of subsidies had sharply raised prices.
Soldiers meanwhile occupied main protest sites and set up checkpoints in key areas, and they later fired tear gas and shot in the air to disperse demonstrators.
Troops also drove armoured vehicles toward protesters in the economic capital Lagos to disperse them. No one was reported hurt in the incidents.
Tensions had mounted yesterday morning as troops set up roadblocks and searched vehicles at key spots in Lagos for the first time since the strike began on January 9.

Police storm CNN office

Amid the tense atmosphere, secret police agents also stormed the CNN office for unclear reasons in Lagos, a witness said, asking questions about expatriate staff quotas and permission to operate, but left after about 20 minutes.
Jonathan announced yesterday that petrol prices would be cut by about a third, but unions had earlier vowed to press ahead with the strike while calling off street protests in response to security concerns raised by the president.
However demonstrations have been organised by a range of civil society and political organisations, and a number of groups had vowed to continue protests.
The president’s announcement came after talks with unions had failed to resolve the dispute, with labour leaders demanding a return to pre-January 1 petrol prices.
He charged that the protests had been “hijacked” by those seeking to promote “discord, anarchy and insecurity”.
“Government will continue to pursue full deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector,” Jonathan said in his address.
“However, given the hardships being suffered by Nigerians, and after due consideration and consultations with state governors and the leadership of the National Assembly, government has approved the reduction of the pump price of petrol to 97 naira (about 60 US cents) per litre.”
He added: “I urge our labour leaders to call off their strike and go back to work.”