Don’t Stop Food Import Now, Fix Insecurity First, TUC tells FG

*Seeks pay rise for workers
*Demands urgent passage of state police bill

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The Trade Union Congress, (TUC) has urged the Federal Government not to suspend food importation, warning it will push up price of rice and other staples to unaffordable levels.

The union called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to consider revaluing the naira to N900-N1000 to a dollar, saying the current N1,380/$ rate is fuelling inflation and impacting negatively on workers’ earnings.

TUC however said it endorses government’s push for state police and the adoption of the NLNG privatization model for refineries.

TUC President-General, Comrade Festus Osifo, who spoke at a Press Conference in Abuja on Tuesday said that importation should continue until insecurity is tackled and farmers return to farms.

He used the opportunity to highlight the union’s position on the economy, security, labour, and governance issues

Responding to plans by the federal government to review the policy lifting of ban on importation of rice and other stable foods, TUC president said that the union is in support of sustaining food import untill such a time when food production improves with farmers having unfettered access to farmlands.

Osifo recalled that in early 2024, TUC submitted a 15-point demand to government, including measures to address food security.

He said insecurity had prevented farmers from accessing their farms, forcing prices up.

“At that time we told government to look for food all over the world, because it is when people see food to eat that they can go to work, that they can go to school,” he said.

He noted that the policy to grant licences for food importation helped to crash prices.

“We don’t want a bag of rice to go back to N100,000 or N120,000. Even where it is today, we still believe it is relatively high.,” he said.

The TUC leader said food importation should only be stopped “only and only if farmers can go back to farms” and the supply gap is closed. “When supply is limited and demand remains constant or increases, price is going to increase,” he said.

In addition, Osifo called on CBN to revalue the naira to N900-N1000 to a dollar, saying the current N1,380/$ rate is fuelling inflation without reflecting in workers’ wages.

Osifo also called on the Central Bank of Nigeria to revalue the naira to around N900 to N1000 to a dollar, arguing that the current rate of about N1,380/$ is still too high and is fuelling inflation.

He said while macroeconomic indicators have stabilised, “it has not dovetailed llllinto the microeconomy” where workers and traders feel the impact daily.

“The only people that devaluation helps is actually the workers, because every other item reflects the naira component. But what never reflects devaluation is the earnings of Nigerian workers,” he argued.

“We strongly believe that the fair value of our naira using purchasing power parity could be somewhere around 900 naira, maximum 1,000 naira to a dollar. CBN has what it takes to manage the exchange rate to about 1,000 naira,” he said.

TUC further said it endorses state police and the adoption of the NLNG privatization model for refineries.

He also said the union is in support of legalizing State Police, adding that the federal government should fast track the passage of Bill to help reduce insecurity in the country.

He dismissed fears of abuse of the state police by those in the helm of affairs at subnational, said that such concerns by few politicians should not negate its importance as a tool to address insecurity crisis across the country.

On refineries, TUC endorsed the NNPC plan to adopt the NLNG model — reduce government equity to 49% and bring in technical private investors with 51% — instead of outright sale.

The TUC commended the Director General of DSS , Oluwatosin Ajayi, for arrests and prosecution of bandits and terrorists.

He also hailed government’s salary increase of 50-80 percent for military personnel, saying that it should extend similar gesture to all public sector workers.

Regarding the ongoing strike by aviation workers, TUC said it supports the move by the affiliate union to get the management of airlines to allow their workers to unionize.

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