Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, assured yesterday that the Federal Government’s plan to stop petrol subsidy payment and introduce N5,000 monthly transport grants is not intended to impose more hardship on Nigerians.
According to him, nothing has been decided as such policies will not be implemented without Nigerians, through Labour, being carried along.
Ngige said the palliatives lined up by the government are to help cushion the effect of the planned subsidy removal.
These include the roll-out of gas-powered vehicles for mass transit, soft loans to farmers, conditional cash transfers to workers, among others.
Ngige said: “The government will not go ahead and do as it pleases; the government has never been doing so.
“Government will always engage labor in the scheme of social dialogue which is one of the cardinal principles of decent work of the International Labour Organisation.”
According to Ngige, the tripartite committee – consisting of labor, Federal Government, and employers have only done phase one of its work.
“We don’t intend to jettison social dialogue. However, the committee we put in place, even the one led by NNPC on fuel subsidy and the palliative that is going to follow it, we have only done phase one of the work.
“The second phase of the work is for them (NNPC) to come and present to us what we are supposed to do if the subsidy is to go.
“How much the removal will save and how much it is going to be used for the benefit of the people?
“We have not reconvened. I chair that committee. When we reconvene, we will cross the bridge as we get there.
