Hungry man can’t be a democrat – Labour
By Victor Ahiuma-Young
LAGOS—ORGANISED Labour, Tuesday, in Lagos, said the greatest threat to April polls in Nigeria, was the non-implementation of the N18,000 new minimum wage, saying a hungry man cannot be a democrat.
A Vice President of Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Mr. Issa Aremu, who spoke at the opening ceremony of 6th African Regional Congress of the International Labour and Employment Relations Association, ILERA, taking place in Lagos, called on participants to recommend appropriate living wage for African workers because African workers are poorly paid.
Mr. Aremu, who is also the General Secretary, National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria, NUTGTWN, warned that Nigeria will not achieve its vision 20:2020 with the increasing failing standard of education.
He said, “it is recorded that about 80 percent of student who sat for 2010 West Africa Examination Council, EAEC, failed Mathematics and English. This is sad.”
Without education democracy can not work,”He said “It is recorded that about 80 per cent of student who sat for 2010 West Africa Examination Council failed mathematics and English. This is sad. Without education democracy can not work,”
Mr Issa Aremu, NLC Vice President spoke .
Addressing participants at congress being hosted by the Nigerian Industrial Relations Association, NIRA, is with the theme; Emerging Trends in Employment Relations in Africa : National and International Perspectives”, Mr. Aremu said that there was the need to properly fund education system because its value was increasingly dropping and condemned the closure of schools for about three weeks because of voter’s registration, lamenting that even the school premises were not used for the registration of voters as planned.
The NLC Vice President noted that “without education the country can not conduct election that will produce good leaders and the economy will not move forward”, arguing that that it was pertinent for the country to stop importation of goods it could produce because it was killing local production and contributing to unemployment.
According to him“Jobs have become scarce commodity. Let us consume what we produce and produce what we consume. There is need to return to productivity”, saying that the country must stop importation for it to return to real economy, enhance productivity and create jobs.
In his goodwill message, Mr Segun Osinowo, Director General of the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) urged the Congress to discuss ways for effective industrial relation practice in government for the economy to grow.
He said it was regrettable that industrial relation issues were not working in Nigeria because trade unions organization and industrial relationship was ineffective.
Alhaji Hassan Summonu, NLC former president stressed the need for good human relation and welfare for workers for better productivity.
He urged government, employers and workers to build on industrial relationship that would develop the economy and improve the lives of people.
