Workers in Ondo State have expressed strong disapproval and outrage over the recent increase in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, to N617 per litre.

They condemned the hike as wicked and an extreme display of insensitivity. The organized labour groups, including the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), and Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC), expressed their frustration during an emergency meeting held in the state capital, Akure.

The workers voiced their concerns that Nigerians were already grappling with the repercussions of subsidy removal, and now, they are faced with another 25 percent increase in the pump price. In response, they demanded that the state government take immediate action to provide palliatives for the people and also ensure the prompt payment of all outstanding salaries and allowances owed to workers.

In a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting, the workers said, “The organised Labour in Ondo State, comprising NLC, TUC, and JNC rose from an emergency meeting held on July 19, 2023, seriously perturbed by the insensitive increase in the pump price of petroleum products in the country weeks after a similar exercise without any attendant palliative measures for the already pauperized workers and masses of our country.  

“We consequently join well-meaning Nigerians in condemning in strong terms this wicked action of government, as it is beyond the reach of the majority of our people.”