Bauchi NLC blasts Tinubu over hardship, demands fair treatment for North-East

As Nigerian workers join millions around the globe to commemorate International Workers’ Day on Thursday, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Bauchi State Chapter, has slammed President Bola Tinubu for deepening hardship for Nigerians and sidelining the North-East in national interventions.

Addressing workers at the 2025 May Day celebration held Thursday in Bauchi, NLC State Chairperson, Comrade Dauda M. Shuaibu, lamented the continued economic hardship, high cost of living, and regional imbalance in federal allocations, citing the total exclusion of the North-East from the ongoing rollout of CNG buses and stations.

“While a single South-West state received 62 CNG stations, not a single one has been approved for the North-East. This is a clear case of economic injustice,” Shuaibu stated, urging the Federal Government to correct the imbalance in the spirit of fairness and equity.

In his address themed ‘Reclaiming the Civic Space in the Midst of Economic Hardship’, the labour leader decried the government’s “anti-people policies” including fuel subsidy removal, increased electricity tariffs, and the floating of the naira.

Shuaibu noted that the Federal Government’s plan to spend N10 billion on solar power for Aso Villa, while citizens suffer power outages, is a sign of misplaced priorities.

He also raised concerns over Nigeria’s mounting debt profile, stating, “From 2023 till date, the government has borrowed massively without any meaningful improvement to show for it.”

On security, Shuaibu criticized the government’s handling of persistent attacks in parts of the North-East, North-Central, and North-West, warning that “all is not well”.

The NLC chair however commended Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed for implementing the new minimum wage, approving the recruitment of 10,000 workers and 3,000 teachers, and initiating key infrastructure projects including flyovers and mega schools in Bauchi metropolis.

But he called for speedy action on several issues including: remittance of workers’ housing loan deductions to the Federal Mortgage Bank; reactivation of motorcycle and car loan schemes for civil servants; release of funds for gratuities and implementation of the N32,000 minimum pension.

Responding, the governor who was represented at the event by the Head of Civil Service, Barrister Sani Muhammad Umar, reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to worker welfare, acknowledging their role in national development.

Bauchi NLC blasts Tinubu over hardship, demands fair treatment for North-East