Chairman, Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts Senator Shehu Sani has warned against intimidation and harassment of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
A statement by the lawmaker said: “The systemic and orchestrated campaign of calumny against the Nigeria Labour Congress must stop. The NLC is the umbrella body formally recognised to defend the interests of workers and must be respected as such. Campaign of calumny and blackmail against the NLC and its leaders, simply for speaking out and standing up for their traditional constituents, must stop.
“We must appreciate the NLC for standing by the masses over the years and its contribution to the realisation of political change. NLC has the right to protest or opt for dialogue, or not.
“We joined and applauded the NLC for protesting price hike in the past; it’s hypocritical to condemn it now for its principled stand on same issue. Our quest for justice and equity must not depend upon the government or persons in power, but upon the matters of principles at hand.
“The cloud of intimidation and blackmail against people for expressing their objections must end. We are in a state where dissent is equated to disloyalty; we must learn to tolerate views and positions different from our own, no matter how unpopular. If we must all agree on all issues at all times, democracy couldn’t have been “invented.
“I urge labour to continue to dialogue while I condemn all acts of treacherous intimidation against its leaders.”
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