NLC says protest ongoing in Niger

Alhaji Yahaya Ndako, Chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), in Niger State, said the protest against hike in petrol price was ongoing in the State despite low turnout.

He told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna on Thursday that the low level of awareness of the reason for labour's protest was responsible for the low turnout.

He said more enlightenment was being carried out now.

He decried the non-participation of financial institutions in the state in the protest.

``You can see that the strike is perfectly going on in Niger state but for the banks that refused to join us.

``All the industrial unions in Niger state have joined us apart from the financial institutions. I don’t know what is wrong with their union. Honestly it is sad’’, he said.

Ndako, however, said one cannot get 100 per cent participation in strike. So, despite hiccups, the NLC strike is succeeding.’’

NAN observed in Minna that both private and public schools were in session and Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the state offered skeletal services.

NLC placed a notice at the state secretariat saying, ``strike continues. All workers are to remain at home until further notice.’’

Meanwhile, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, ASP Bala Elkana, told NAN that police personnel have been deployed across the state to secure lives and property.

According to him, ``we have deployed police to all the nooks and crannies of Niger state to ensure that nobody is harassed and nobody forces anybody to do what he or she did not intend to do.’’

Elkana said that the police intended to keep its personnel in the streets as long as the strike lasted.

``This is because we don’t want hoodlums to hijack the strike’’, he said. (NAN)