Ahead of the proposed industrial action by the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Anambra State Police Command has said it is committed to enforcing the legal recommendations of the Federal Government, calling on members of Labour in the state to exercise caution to avoid any breach of public peace and safety.
The NLC and the Trade Union Congress have decided to proceed with their indefinite strike on Monday despite calls from the National Assembly leadership to resume negotiations, although they said they would meet and discuss the appeal.
Negotiations have seen the Organized Labour move from the initially proposed N615,000 as the new national minimum wage, to N497,000 last week, before lowering it to N494,000 on Tuesday.
The proposal is, however, a far cry from the federal government’s offer of N60,000.
The federal government has therefore called on the labour unions to shelve the planned industrial action and return to the negotiating table, insisting that labour’s N494,000 minimum wage demand will make the federal government downside its 1.2 million workforces.
Meanwhile, following the Federal Government’s recent declaration that the planned strike by the Nigerian Labour Congress is illegal and premature, the police in Anambra are saying they will enforce the government’s directive.
According to the spokesperson of the state Police Command, Tochukwu Ikenga, who made this known in a statement on Monday, “the Command understands the right of organized labour to engage in such actions to advocate for the interests of all workers, but also the importance of adherence to the existing laws governing such activities.
“The command has therefore deployed Police Operatives to different strategic areas, tasked with the responsibility against any miscreants using the opportunity to cause any breach of public safety and peace in the State.
“To this end, the Command encourages the good people of the State to go about their lawful businesses and be law-abiding, vigilant, and security-conscious.
