By Bala Ajiya
Damaturu- The five- day  nation wide strike action embarked upon by the NLC over subsidy removal has affected all and sundry in the Damaturu, Yobe State and its environments. Apart from the astronomical increase the price of petrol, the residents are battling with the increase in price of food stuffs and condiments in the market.

Many families were starved of food which was not available in the market because of the strike action even as movements of the people was restricted by the law enforcement agents in Damaturu from 5pm to 6am daily since the strike began on Monday.

Following the increment in transport fare, many people who travel led for the Christmas/new year holidays could return home due to the increase in transport fare as a result of the fuel subsidy removal. This is the time most of the civil servants were eager to return back to their working place after the holidays which always leave their pockets drained but because of the strike embarked on by NLC coupled with the increment in transport fare, most workers were unable to return back to their base.

Aisha Musa, a house wife and a civil servant while commenting on the strike action said that her family was unable to feed from Day-3 of the strike .

” Even with the money in the house, you could not get even common sugar from the shops in every nook and cranny of Damaturu metropolis because businesses were shut down. In fact, we are feeling the strike too much and that is why we are appealing to the Federal Government and Labour to reach a compromise on the issue of fuel subsidy removal and save the masses of the agony we are going through.

Alhaji Umaru Faruq, an activist resident in Damaturu sees the whole issue ” as a charade , saying the government is not sincere about the figure they gave us on this fuel subsidy because if government is spending billions of dollars on oil subsidy, then who are the beneficiaries the masses or the oil cartels? Why are they not being punished.

The president should see the way Nigerians are suffering because most of the families couldn’t afford three- square meals daily but the government went ahead and removed the subsidy which led to the increment of fuel price in the market and today, we are suffering it and the government is insensitive to the plight of the common man who gave them the mandate to rule them .

So, President Jonathan should restore back the fuel subsidy which will bring back the pump price to the normal price or resign from office as president of the federal republic of Nigeria.”