NLC logos.
The Federal Government on Thursday convened another
meeting with members of the organised labour movement.
This comes after an attempt to resolve the impasse between the
government and workers’ unions over the recent hike in the price of
petrol and electricity tariff failed on Sunday.
In his opening remarks at Thursday’s meeting in Abuja, the
Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, said Sunday’s
event was not a walkout but a recess.
He insisted that both parties – the government and the labour
unions – were working for the betterment of the nation.
Ngige stressed that the issues at stake, which included the hike
in electricity tariff and the price of petrol, do not only affect
the citizens but also those on the government’s side.
He was hopeful that the meeting would produce the results that
would be beneficial to both parties.
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss
Mustapha, who was also at the meeting, addressed the labour
leaders.
He gave an assurance that the government would ensure that
resolutions reached would be for the benefit of the Nigerian
people.
Mustapha also thanked the labour leaders for their show of
patriotism, stressing that what happened on Sunday was a recess and
not a breakdown of discussions.
Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige.
On his part, TUC President, Peter Esele, stressed the need for
sincerity on the part of the government to enable the meeting to
arrive at a logical conclusion.
He also appealed to the conveners of the meeting to allow the
media stay till the end of the discussion for the purpose of
transparency
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
The NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, was absent at the meeting, but
he was represented by the General Secretary of the National Union
of Electricity Employees (NUEE), Joe Ajaero.
Ajaero disagreed with the remarks of the labour minister and the
SGF that the last meeting was a recess, insisting that it did not
end peacefully.
He also insisted that the agenda for discussion should be
presented for adoption before going forward.
After the representatives from both sides made their remarks,
the meeting went into a technical session.
Others in attendance include the Minister of State for Labour
and Employment, Festus Keyamo; the Minister of State for Petroleum
Resources, Timipre Sylva; and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs,
Sadiya Farouk.
The government has continued to engage the labour unions in
discussions since October when the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC)
and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) threatened to embark on a
nationwide protest over the increased prices.
On their part, the NLC and TUC have consistently maintained that
the government should reverse the prices and provide palliatives to
cushion the immediate effects of the hike before it engages them in
a dialogue.
A meeting to address the issues on Sunday was stalled after the
organised labour movement staged a walkout to protest what they
described as government’s breach of agreement.
Read more https://swordpress.com.ng/2020/11/27/nigerian-govt-reconvenes-meeting-with-organised-labour-leaders/
The Kingdom of Netherlands on Thursday officially presented a
smuggled Ife Terracotta antiquity dated to be at least 600 years
old to Nigeria.
The repatriated antiquity was presented to the Minister of
Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed at a ceremony held in
Abuja.
![image](/2020/10/NWLRland.jpg")
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyema, Netherlands
Ambassador to Nigeria, Harry Van Dijk, Nigeria Charge de Affairs to
Netherlands, Kabiru Musa and the Director-General National
Commission for Museum and Monuments (NCMM) were present at the
event.
Receiving the repatriated object, the minister said it was
smuggled through the airport in Ghana before getting to Europe in
2019.
“The smuggler had obtained forged documents purported to be from
a former Director-General of the National Commission for Museums
and Monuments.
“The smuggler ultimately passed through the airport in Ghana
before getting to Europe in 2019.
“The Dutch Customs at Schiphol Airport suspected that the object
might be illicitly imported and alerted the antiquity protection
office known as the Inspectie, which is the Information and
Heritage Inspectorate of the Netherlands, to give an opinion.
“The Inspectie invited Nigeria to prove her case against the
suspected smuggler,’’ he said.
In proving the case, Mohammed said the NCMM acted swiftly by
dispatching its lawyer, Mr Babatunde Adebiyi, to present evidence
and argue for the return of the object.
He said Nigeria was successful in the case and the claim was
determined in its favour.
Mohammed said after all internal procedures, including the right
of appeal, were exhausted, the Government of the Netherlands handed
over the object to the Nigerian Embassy in Hague on Nov. 2.
He noted that with the repatriation of the “priceless and
timeless’’ artefact the federal government efforts at pursuing the
return of Nigerian antiquities had started yielding fruits.
The minister underscored the need for Nigeria to tap into
tourism and other fields, where Nigeria has comparative advantages,
in order to generate income for the nation and secure jobs for the
youth.
“One way of generating income for the country is if our cultural
properties are exhibited around the world to a fee-paying audience,
on the basis of proper agreement that acknowledges us as owners and
confers the right benefits on us.
“But this is not possible for as long as most of them adorn the
museums and private collections of others, who describe them as
their properties,’’ he said.
The minister reiterated Nigeria commitment to joint
international efforts to put a stop to illicit export and import of
cultural goods.
He said Netherland and Nigeria will make a joint presentation on
the repatriation to the UNESCO Secretariat in Paris, so that other
nations might take a cue from it in finding rapprochement and
common ground concerning the issue of return of antiquities.
On his part, Onyema said it is a happy day for Nigeria because
there are many Nigerian cultural assets around the world which have
become difficult to track.
He said some of the assets were taken out of the country for
over 100 years back and some more recently.
The minister said there is underground illegal market for
cultural asset which has made them difficult to identify, retrieve
and repatriate.
Onyema said the government is committed to the restitution of
all the nation’s cultural assets illegally taken and litter across
the globe
Musa said the repatriation was made possible in compliance with
the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Prevention of Illegal Trafficking
of Cultural Heritage which Nigeria and Netherlands are
signatories.
He said that the return of the smuggled artefact was significant
considering the fact that it coincided with 50 years-celebration of
the UNESCO Convention.