The Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC, has suggested that the ongoing strike by organized labour unions will make life unbearable for Muslims preparing for Id al-Kabir (Salah).

MURIC, therefore, advised the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, to postpone its strike until after the Muslim festival.

The group made the request on Monday in a statement signed by its Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola.

Part of the statement read: “There is no scintilla of doubt that the strike will make life unbearable for Muslims preparing for Id al-Kabir (Salah) which is just a few days away.

“As expected, the worker’s unions of other service-providing sectors like petroleum and electricity have offered to join. This means the lives of Nigerians are likely to be thrown into a state of higgledy-piggledy in the next few days.

But what does NLC think will happen to Muslims whose festival of Id al-Kabir is already knocking on the door? Transport fares to and fro their various destinations will skyrocket. Movements will be so adversely affected that the whole Salah period will become a horrendous experience. Is that what NLC wants?

“The notice of strike was too short. It was given from the negotiation table and it was 48 hours or less. The approach of the current crop of NLC leaders is aggressive, arrogant, fascist and partisan. The body language is unmistakable. It is directed at bringing the government down. This NLC has no respect for the rule of law, not even an iota of decorum for democratic practices.

“If we cannot speak for the government, what about Nigerian Muslims whose lives your strike could turn into a sheer nightmare? Is this a deliberate attempt to make life uncomfortable for Muslims? Will NLC declare a strike one week before Christmas? Or is this about bringing down our Muslim-Muslim ticket? Is this part of the ‘religious war’ of ‘Yes Daddy’?

This strike is ill-timed. It is a recipe for a topsy-turvy Salah. We advise NLC to postpone it till after the Salah. If NLC rejects our advice and goes ahead with its satanic strike, we will ask all Muslim workers who know that they will meet Allah yaom al-Qiyaamah (The Last Day) not to cooperate with NLC. They should reject the strike because it is an assault on the religion of Islam.

“We call on all Muslim leaders and Islamic organisations in Nigeria to speak up now before it is too late. We must reject the tyranny of Muslim-haters thinly veiled in unionism. We say ‘No To Strike in Salah.’”