Organised labour has warned that the proposed move by the federal government to wean electricity subsidy would subject millions of Nigerians to more suffering and destroy already struggling enterprises.
Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Acting General Secretary, Comrade Benson Upah, told LEADERSHIP Weekend that the action would push homes into poverty and widen business failures, job losses, and social unrest. He also deplored privatisation of the electricity sector on grounds of corruption and collusive relations between the government and the distribution companies.
The federal government, via Finance Minister Wale Edun, recently announced that targeted increases in tariffs and a pay-as-you-go scheme would replace subsidies a plan to save over ₦1 trillion annually.
But the NLC insists that the policy will devastate ordinary Nigerians. Upah stressed: “High tariffs are not good for business anywhere. We expect higher production costs, low patronage, more closures, lay-offs, and inevitable social threats.”
Citing a recent US State Department report, labor officials further stated that Nigeria’s new ₦70,000 minimum wage of just $47.90 a month following naira devaluation is poverty-level and weakly enforced nationwide.
Opposition leaders shared the complaint. President Tinubu was urged by former PDP chairman Prince Uche Secondus to reduce the people’s burden, not improve it, and opposition spokesperson Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi accused government bureaucrats of closing their ears to Nigerians’ plight in their quest for higher pay.
Economist Gabriel Adewuyi added further that whereas subsidies are a strain on public finances, removing them without stronger wages or industrial development will worsen hardship, especially ahead of the 2027 election.
