Port Harcourt: Victory after just one brief meeting
The Rivers State Government (RSG) and the Organised Labour or Labour Movement in the state have just called a truce, thus staving off a strike action that ought to start the next. Violence was much on the card. Little cheers for this because it was avoidable.
Labour Congress led in the state by Beatrice Itubo had consistently accused the Nyesom Wike administration of refusing to discuss or tell Labour how it arrived at the minimum wage calculations. This dispute began since January 2020 when the implementation of the year’s budget containing the wages began. Instead, the government moved with sledge hammer, first by sealing the Labour House it built for workers and next by stopping the remittance of check-off dues to labour so as to cripple their finances.
On the other hand, insiders in government accused Labour of refusing to exploit informal contacts to reach the governor and get problems solved. They said threat does not work.
At the background of it all may be the suspicion that the Itubo-led NLC is pro-apc. Nobody has presented facts to this but every statement made by Itubo is read in politics.
Now, as both sides crawled to sword lines, they suddenly realized there was something called dialogue. The violent-sounding opponents suddenly found space in the council hall of the Government House, sat down, and pronto, reached agreements on almost all the sore points. Thereafter, they called of the strike and the expected dangers behind it.
In all strike actions, hidden interest groups usually line up behind the strikers. Often, if the strike is called off, these forces get disappointed. You will hear them pressing Labour not to concede anything but to press on to total victory that may humiliate the government.
In labour matters, nobody wins everything and not winning everything cannot be used to insult any side. We must realise that it was demand for proper minimum wage that started this problem. The concessions they have won are a strong point.
This crisis began in January when labour craed for dialogue but govt seemed felt insulted. Labour issued threat, government fumed. Labour declared strike in March, 2020, the RSG declared war, COVID separated the fight.
Labour returned to warpath after the lockdown was called off, RSG welcomed it, no negotiation. Labour declared strike, RSG chose to go to court, as if Court has ever stopped any strike. Government unleashed their youth supporters instead of releasing mediators. Deadlines were issued, tension grew. Now, at the point of crossing the swords, government suddenly sat down for dialogue, strange?
Worthy of note is the fact that the NLC boss is from Bauchi, Gov Wike went to Bauchi at the weekend, any connection? If so, why would Rivers issue be discussed in Bauchi? Is it not evident that no single mediation mechanism or platform remains active in Rivers State anymore, that also being the reason why every single matter in the state escalates to high heavens?
Now, did court help? Could this send a lesson to the Governor that court is not everything? Also, government supporters shouted that labour was being sponsored by the APC. Now that both parties sat down for once and peace returned, what happens to the allegation? Has the sponsorship expired or has PDP taken over the sponsorship?
Why was promotion demand forgotten, are there no workers anxiously waiting for it? Why is there no timeframe given for the actions agreed?
The only strange thing is; why did the RSG easily surrender on these points, why then did it apply such high level of high-handedness all this while and shut all negotiations?
Finally, we agree that issue of promotions should at least be mentioned for further dialogue, but that is not enough for Labour to refuse to call off the strike.
Finally, when was the invitation for meeting tabled? Was it reason for their visit to PH or did their songs at the airport scare the government to plead for a meeting? If a meeting was on the card all along, why were both parties charging and grandstanding like WWW wrestlers, only to suspend the fight? Whatever the case, its good to see peace again.
Welcome, dear Peace! Goodbye, ugly Tension.