The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has broken its silence on the planned nationwide protest, urging President Bola Tinubu to heed the people’s cry and address the grievances of millions of Nigerians suffering from economic hardship.

In a statement signed by NLC President, Joe Ajaero, the congress expressed concern over the growing poverty and hunger in the country, citing statistics from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the International Rescue Committee (IRC).

Ajaero noted that 133 million Nigerians live below extreme poverty lines, while 32 million have been exposed to acute hunger in the first three quarters of 2024. He added that millions more are being recruited into the armies of the unemployed and under-employed.

The NLC president described the situation as “dire” and urged the government to listen to the people’s cry rather than dismissing their concerns as “sponsored political dissent.”

The statement reads in part, “It is very difficult to tell a Nigerian who has lost his or her job due to the current economic downturn to maintain their cool. It is very tough to advise a nursing mother who is unsure where the next meal for her suckling child to be at ease. It is a herculean task to demand patience from a youth who has been out of school for the past six years without a job and is burdened with aged parents to cater for.

“During this very difficult times, the right of Nigerians to complain must be fully respected. The Organised Labour movement led by the Nigeria Labour Congress has had cause in recent times to protest against the crushing suffering in the land brought about by the harsh economic policies of government including the astronomical hike in the price of refined petroleum products, the increase in the cost of electricity cum the unavailability of the same, the unconscientious raise and duplication of user access charges to most public utilities including hospital treatment, water, waste disposal and general spike in the cost of living.

“It is the well-considered position of the Congress that bellicosity and hostility towards the protesters and other aggrieved Nigerians do not offer any tangible remedy either to the pain endured by the populace or the frustrations of having so little in a country where a few privileged persons are living in obscene luxury especially at the expense of the majority. These are dire times. Nigerians are angry.

“The times require government to “jaw jaw” and not “war war” with Nigerians. The truth is that you cannot smack a child and at the same time ask the child not to cry.

“A stitch in time might still save nine!”

Reports have it that a number of Nigerians are expected to take to the streets on August 1st for a 10-day protest to demand better living conditions and an end to economic hardship.