“In this regard, we hereby direct all our zonal councils, domestic committee, and other organs of the union to ensure total compliance with the congress directive,” the statement said.

However, the President of the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions, Mr Oluwole Olusoji, said ASSBIFI was waiting for directives from the TUC to determine its next move.

Meanwhile, the TUC through its General Secretary, Nuhu Toro, disclosed that it would again hold a meeting with the government team on Tuesday evening in furtherance of the discussions on the impact of the fuel subsidy removal held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Sunday.

During the meeting, the congress presented a charter of demands, including a demand for a review of the minimum wage to N200,000 and tax breaks for workers.

In response, the FG’s team promised to deliver the demands to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for review.

In a move to prevent the planned strike and protests from being hijacked by hoodlums, the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba met with police managers in Abuja on Tuesday where he ordered them to carry out effective deployments to forestall any breakdown of law and order across the country.

Alkali-Baba said, “Regardless of the quantum of achievements recorded within the period under review and the successful democratic transitioning that happened on the 29th of May, 2023, there still remains prevailing and projected threats across the country, including the aftermath of the fuel subsidy removal with the emerging threat of industrial strike action.

“Consequently, we shall not rest on our oars. Rather, we must redouble our efforts to maintain the needed peace and stability of our democracy. This is critically important as we also prepare for the nation’s Democracy Day on June 12.

“In so doing, I charge you all to remain focused while monitoring the election tribunals and the proposed industrial actions across the country. You must develop proactive crime management mechanisms to forestall any untoward acts from political and non-political actors.”

In compliance with the IG’s directive, many state commands have deployed police operatives across their jurisdictions to ensure public safety during the strike and protest.

The Police Public Relations Officer in Nasarawa State, DSP Ramhan Nansel, said the command had deployed its personnel in 13 local government areas of the state to forestall any breakdown of law and order during the protest.

“Measures have been put in place to that effect,” he added.

The Bayelsa State Police Command equally assured that it had put in place measures to prevent a breakdown of law and order.

The spokesman for the command, Asinim Butswat, stated, “We have deployed adequate policemen to ensure there is no breach of the peace.”

In a related development, petrol marketers and transporters on Monday distanced themselves from the industrial action declared by the NLC.

Members of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria, National Association of Road Transport Owners and Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria, among others, also stressed that the over N13tn spent on subsidy by the Federal Government would have been deployed to develop other sectors of the economy.

They insisted that the government, through the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, had run out of funds to sustain the fuel subsidy regime, highlighting the over N2.8tn subsidy debt that the federation currently owes the NNPCL.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPCL, Mele Kyari, recently said the Federal Government still owed the company N2.8tn that it had spent on petrol subsidy.

The oil marketers and transporters told one of our correspondents that the planned industrial action by the NLC would not address the situation, but would further worsen the hardship in the country.

They stated that if fuel subsidy continues, the country’s petrol subsidy spending is going to rise to about N20tn when the projected N6tn that is meant to be spent on subsidy in 2023 is added to the N13tn already consumed by the subsidy regime between 2005 and 2021.

The President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria, Billy Gillis-Harry, said those agitating for the continuation of subsidy must understand that the country had spent over N13tn in subsidising petrol, at the detriment of key sectors of the economy.

He said the labour congress should give room for dialogue, stressing that oil marketers would not shut their filling stations as the NLC embarks on its nationwide industrial action.

Gillis-Harry stated, “PETROAN’s position is that the NLC should be patient and exhaust all the possibilities of reasonable discussion. This is because, at the end of the day, Nigerians are the ones to suffer, as they are already suffering.

“Subsidy removal is a very difficult and hard decision, but it must be made and PETROAN supports that. Can you imagine spending N13tn on subsidies for about 16 years? Do you know what that amount of money would have accomplished for the country in terms of infrastructure, health, education, etc?’’

He said the discussion between the Federal Government and NLC should go ahead, adding that stakeholders in the downstream sector were also trying to get the government to sit down with oil marketers and come to an agreement on what to do.

Gillis-Harry said every player in the sector, including labour unions, “should be looking for solutions, not anybody threatening anybody. That is my take issue.”

Asked whether some oil marketers might be tempted to join in the strike, the PETROAN president replied in the negative, adding that such actions would further worsen the plights of Nigerians.

“So, as a responsible association of businessmen, we do not intend to join in the fray to cause more problems and hardship for Nigeria. We are not joining the strike. That’s our take,” the PETROAN president stated.

Also speaking on the issue, the President of the National Association of Road Transport Owners, Yusuf Othman, said NARTO endorsed the immediate halt in the payment of subsidy on petrol by President Tinubu during his inaugural address.

“For us, we support the full deregulation of the downstream oil sector, and of course, we expect that some palliative should be in place. But now that subsidy is gone, the palliative can be put in place.’’

He also urged Nigerians to exercise patience with the Federal Government as regards the removal of the subsidy, adding that the subsidy regime only benefitted and enriched very few persons.

“We expect that Nigerians should wait for what the government has on the table for us because sincerely speaking there are very few beneficiaries of the subsidy regime as against the majority of Nigerians,” Yusuf stated.

In the meantime, the Ogun, and Sokoto NLC chapters have backed the strike action just as the Kwara State government reduced work hours.

The chairman of the union in Ogun State, Hammed Ademola said they have mobilized the workers in the state ahead of the strike.

Also, his Sokoto State counterpart, Abdullahi Jungle, confirmed that workers in the state would be part of the strike action.

“We are definitely joining the strike as directed by the national leadership of the union and Sokoto State will not be an exception,” he added.

As part of moves to ease the burden of workers in the state as a result of the fuel subsidy removal, the Kwara State government on Monday approved a temporary palliative measure, including reducing work hours.

The State Head of Service, Mrs Susan Oluwole announced on Monday that Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq has directed that the work days be reduced from five days to three days per week.

Oluwole in a statement signed by Murtala Atoyebi, Chief Press Secretary in the office of the head of Service directed all Heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies in the state to immediately work out a format indicating the alternating work days for each worker under them.

The Head of Service however warned the workers not to abuse the magnanimity of the governor, stressing that the regular monitoring of MDAs by her office would be intensified to ensure strict compliance with the directive.

“Civil servants will now work for three days in Kwara State, as against the current five days. Civil service authorities are expected to release further guidance on the measure, including how it affects health workers and teachers,’’ the statement said.

The governor also met with labour leaders in the state where he appealed to shelve the strike, noting that the removal of the fuel subsidy was done in good faith to curb further damage to the economy.