Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has once again told the federal government to suspend the implementation of the new tax laws, threatening a possible nationwide showdown with workers if its worries are ignored.
The warning was given on Wednesday in the Federal Capital Territory by the President of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, during the launch of a memoir in honour of a former NLC President, Hassan Summonu, to mark his 85th birthday.
Ajaero stated that the tax laws were drafted and implemented without the input of workers in both the public and private sectors, despite being the nation’s major taxpayers, describing the laws as regressive and an added burden on low-income earners.
He said, “From the Presidential Committee on Tax to the legislative process, Nigerian workers were deliberately excluded. We warned the nation, but no one listened,” hence that the outcome was a set of laws that worsened hardship for workers and the poor.
He further said, “Any tax law that taxes people living in extreme poverty cannot be described as fair or progressive.”
Ajaero appealed to the government to pause, review and redirect the process, stressing that credible laws must strengthen institutions rather than undermine them.
The senator representing Edo North Senatorial District, Adams Oshiomhole, asked labour leaders to rise and challenge any policy they deem unfair rather than grumbling, saying mere complaints can’t solve whatever grievance they have.
The former NLC President said even if the labour movement complains from now till tomorrow, nobody would listen to them except they challenge the policy.
