Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu, will address Nigerians in a nationwide broadcast today Sunday to mark the 63rd independence anniversary of the country.
A statement on Saturday by the presidential spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale, said that the president will address the country by 7 a.m. today.
According to the statement, “Television, radio, and other electronic media networks are enjoined to hook up to the network services of the Nigerian Television Authority and Radio Nigeria for the broadcast.”
It was gathered by our reporters that Tinubu’s address is coming two days before a total, indefinite showdown from the organised labour over the biting hardship on the citizenry occasioned by his anti-poor policies.
It was also gathered that on Friday, the leaders of the organised labour – the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) – failed to attend a meeting called by the representatives of the Nigerian government in a desperate effort to avert the planned nationwide strike from October 3.
According to the two labour centres, the government’s invitation came late as they had already scheduled engagements outside Abuja, the federal capital.
The government had, on Friday, summoned an emergency meeting meeting with the leaders of NLC and TUC in an effort to sway organised labour and its allies to shelve the industrial action.
The meeting, which was scheduled for Friday, 12 noon at Aso Villa, Conference Room of the Office of the Chief of Staff to Mr. President, was later shifted to evening, to allow NLC and TUC to reach their leaders outside Abuja.
The invitation letter dated September 29, was signed on behalf of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Simon Lalong, by the Director, Trade Union Services and Industrial Relations, Emmanuel Igbinosun.
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