NAIJAFEED

Tuesday, June 4, 2024

Ademola Lookman in travel chaos ahead of Nigeria's World Cup qualifier vs. South Africa due to Strike

Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman is one of eight players unable to join Nigeria's training camp in preparation for the first of two FIFA World Cup qualifying fixtures this month.

Lookman, who recently scored a hat-trick as Atalanta defeated Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 in the UEFA Europe League final; goalkeeper Maduka Okoye; and outfield players Semi Ajayi, Bright Osayi-Samuel, Calvin Bassey, Frank Onyeka, Alex Iwobi and Paul Onuachu have all arrived in Nigeria but are unable to reach the team camp in Uyo "because of the ongoing Nigeria Labour Congress strike that has stalled domestic flights", Super Eagles media officer Promise Efoghe said.

Nigeria's organised labour called a nationwide strike after failed negotiations with the government to raise the federal monthly minimum wage from N30 000 ($US20) to more than N400 000 ($US269).

The absence of the players is a major headache for head coach Finidi George as he prepares the team for the fixture against South Africa, with African Player of the Year Victor Osimhen and Bayer Leverkusen's Nathan Tella having already withdrawn from the squad.

Osimhen is out for four weeks with an injury, and has been replaced by Enugu Rangers left-back Kenneth Igbokwe.

Tella is reported to have excused himself due to family reasons. He has been replaced in the squad by Caykur Rizespor's Ibrahim Olawoyin.

The remainder of the squad -- 15 players -- trained for the first time on Monday morning at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo.

Colin Udoh, ESPN

Power grid in Nigeria shut down, airlines disrupted as unions strike

Nigeria’s main labour unions have shut down the national electrical grid and disrupted flights across the country as they began an indefinite strike over the government’s failure to agree a new minimum wage.

The strike is the fourth embarked upon by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), two of the country’s biggest union federations, since President Bola Tinubu took office last year.

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) said on Monday that union members drove operators away at power control rooms and shut down at least six substations, eventually shutting down the national grid at 2:19am (01:19 GMT).

Nigerian airline Ibom Air said it was suspending flights until further notice due to the strike while another, United Nigeria, said airports across the country had been shut down and striking workers had permitted none of its flights to operate.

Electricity and aviation unions said in a statement they had directed members to withdraw their services in compliance with the indefinite strike.

“We demand a living wage,” the NLC said on X. It and the TUC represent hundreds of thousands of government workers across key sectors.

The unions want the current minimum monthly wage of 30,000 naira ($20) to be increased to nearly 500,000 naira ($336). The government has offered 60,000 naira ($40).

The unions’ demand would increase the government wage bill by 9.5 trillion naira ($6.3bn), which is capable of “destabilising the economy”, Information Minister Mohammed Idris said.

Since taking office, Tinubu has embarked on reforms that have fuelled inflation, sending it to an almost 30-year high, and worsened a cost-of-living crisis in Africa’s most populous nation.

He has been under pressure from unions to offer relief to households and small businesses after scrapping subsidies on petrol, which previously kept fuel cheap but cost the government $10bn a year.

Unions declared an indefinite strike on Friday after talks over a new minimum wage collapsed. They said the strike would last until a new minimum wage is in place.

The TCN said it was making an effort to recover and stabilise the national grid, but unions were obstructing grid recovery nationwide.

Unions have also demanded a reversal of an electricity tariff hike that went into effect last month for better-off consumers who use the most power as the government tries to wean the economy off subsidies.

Al Jazeera

Monday, June 3, 2024

Video - Motorists in Nigeria still face shortages a year after subsidy removal

Despite being one of Africa's top crude producers, Nigeria relies on fuel imports to meet its energy needs. According to energy experts, the country needs to boost local crude refining capacity to increase fuel supply.

CGTN

Video - Investors eye a slice of "Nollywood"

Nigeria's movie industry continues to captivate audiences and attract significant foreign investment. With vibrant storytelling and improved production quality, foreign investors are now eyeing a slice of one of the world's largest film industries.

CGTN

Idris Elba to direct short film ‘Dust to Dreams,’ in collaboration with Nigeria's EbonyLife Films

Nigeria strike: ‘My monthly pay won't buy a bag of rice’

As an indefinite general strike begins in Nigeria, one worker tells the BBC that it’s impossible to survive on what the government is proposing as a minimum wage as it is not enough to buy a bag of rice.

Security guard Mallam Magaji Garba says he needs 50kg of rice, which costs 75,000 naira ($56; £44), to feed his family each month, before taking other expenses into account.

The minimum wage is currently 30,000 naira, which the government is offering to double.

Nigeria's unions under the umbrella of the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress are demanding it be raised to 494,000 naira, which they say reflects the current economic realities.

Nigerian information minister says accepting the union demands would cripple the economy and lead to job losses because business would not be able to pay their workers and so have to close.

The walkout has caused disruption at the country’s busiest airport, Murtala Muhammed International in Lagos, with passengers saying they have been left stranded outside the domestic terminal.

Workers in health, banking, aviation and other major sectors are expected to stay away from work, a move that will cripple the West African country's economy.

Mr Magaji, who works for the education ministry in the northern city of Kano, says he and his family of 14 are struggling to survive.

“I am calling on the government to consider us and increase the minimum wage so that we can live and eat decently.

“It’s not fair that we have top government officials earning millions monthly and the smallest workers earn so little and finding it difficult to feed.”

The 59-year-old said he sometimes has to walk to work as he cannot afford to pay for transport.

Nigerians have been hit by a double whammy of the removal of a fuel subsidy and a collapse in the value of the naira since President Bola Tinubu took office a year ago.

Mr Tinubu says the measures are necessary to reform the economy so it works better in the long term but in the short term, inflation has risen to nearly 34%.

The government has ended the policy of pegging the value of the naira to the US dollar, allowing it to dramatically depreciate. Whereas 10,000 naira would have bought $22 last May, it will now only purchase $6.80.

Mansur Abubakar, BBC