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Labour Suspends Nationwide Strike,  Protests

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..Federal Government suspend the electricity tarriff
Organised Labour, comprising the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) yesterday suspended the much publicized indefinite nationwide strike and mass protests after reaching a consensus with the Federal Government early this morning at a meeting between the two parties

The government in a meeting which dragged until 3 a.m this morning and led by the Secretary to the Government of the

Federation, Boss Mustapha had agreed to suspend the electricity tarriff for two weeks while a committee comprising labour and government representatives will advise further.

In a communique issued at the end of the meeting, government agreed to some palliatives for workers to ameliorate the effect of the increase in pump price of petrol and electricity tariff hike.
Addressing the media after the meeting, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige said the palliatives will be in the areas of transport, power, housing, agriculture and humanitarian support.Ngige who read from the communique said the parties agreed to set up a Technical Committee comprising Ministries, Departments, Agencies, NLC and TUC, which will work for a duration of two weeks effective Monday 28th September 2020.

The Minister said the committee will examine the justification for the new policy on cost – reflective Electricity Tariff adjustments; to look at the different Electricity Distribution Company (DISCOs) and their different electricity tariff vis-à-vis NERC order and mandate and examine and advise government on the issues that have hindered the deployment of the six million meters.”Withing the two weeks the DICOS shall suspend the increase in electricity tariff,” he said.

On the downstream sector, part of the compromise reached was government agreement to revive the nation’s four refineries with the Port Harcourt refinerie achieving 50 percent completion by December 2021. The FG will also facilitate licensing of new modular refineries.

The communique reads partly, “All parties agreed on the urgency for increasing the local refining capacity of the nation to reduce the overdependency on importation of petroleum products to ensure energy security, reduce cost of finished products, increase employment and business opportunities for Nigerians.

”To address above, NNPC to expedite the rehabilitation of the nation’s four refineries located in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna and to achieve 50% completion for Port Harcourt by December 2021, while timelines and delivery for Warri and Kaduna will be established by the inclusive Steering Committee.”Accordingly, the Federal Government agreed it will facilitate the delivery of licensed modular and regular refineries, involvement of upstream companies in petroleum refining and establishing framework for financing in the downstream sector.

The meeting also agreed that NNPC will expedite work on the Build Operate and Transfer framework for the nation’s pipelines and strategic depots network for efficient transportation and distribution of Petroleum products to match the delivery timelines of the refineries as agreed.

The communique stated, “To cushion the impacts of the downstream sector deregulation and tariffs adjustment in the power sector, the Federal Government will implement the following:”A specific amount to be unveiled by the FGN in two weeks’ time will be isolated from the Economic Sustainability Programme Intervention Fund and be accessed by Nigerian Workers with subsequent provision for 240,000 under the auspices of NLC and TUC for participation in agricultural ventures through the CBN and the Ministry of Agriculture. The timeline will be fixed at the next meeting. “Federal Government will facilitate the removal of tax on minimum wage as a way of cushioning the impacts of the policy on the lowest vulnerable.”Federal Government will make available to organized labour 133 CNG/LPG driven mass transit buses immediately and provide to the major cities across the country on a scale up basis thereafter to all States and Local Governments before December 2021.”Housing: 10% be allocated to Nigerian workers under the ongoing Ministry of Housing and Finance initiative through the NLC and TUC.”Consequently, the NLC and TUC agreed to suspend the planned industrial action

.”The communique was signed on behalf of the Organised labour by NLC president, Ayuba Wabba, TUC president, Quadri Olaleye, General Secretary of both labour centres; president of NUPENG, William Akporeha and PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo.On government side, communique was signed by the Secretary to the government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige; minister of information, Lai Mohammed It was also signed by minister of state for Labour, Festus Keyamo; minister of state for power, Godwin Jedi-Agba and minister of state for petroleum, Timipre SylvaSpeaking earlier, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha said that some of the contentious issues the labour was agitating for including the issue of deregulation have been resolved.He said, “When we met last week Thursday, we had a very robust discussion. We had very good insights into issues that necessitated Minister of Labour, to engage with the organized labour as to navigating through the agitating issues.”I believe strongly that we have resolved virtually everything that was on the table in the area of deregulation of downstream sector of the oil and gas and the increase in the pump price.”With regards to power, there are still outstanding issues that were raised by labour as to the conflicting information they had regarding electricity tariff as it applies in different areas and DISCOs. It was at stage that there should be some kind of validation. It was at this stage that the meeting adjourned”Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige in his opening remarks commended the patriotism of Labour for showing up for the rescheduled meeting despite the late noticeHe said, “I want to welcome you to this emergency meeting which we fixed in less than 5 hours today, but we have a large turnout. This to me shows that everybody is concerned on what is on ground “At our last meeting which the press described as deadlocked, I dont think it was deadlocked. I made it clear that we put something on table and Labour centres said they will go and fine tune those proposals to suit their own needs. And in between that, there were some other developments. A Judicial process was served on us by a CSO asking us as defendants to make sure that there is not strike. So, we felt that because of those issues, our date for us to reconvene tomorrow was no longer tenable. I therefore contacted the head of the two labour centres and the SGF and the Chief of Staff to the President and we all agreed that we need to talk and dialogue as soon as possible. That necessitated our invitation which was very urgent.”I dont think we will waste much time, we know where we stopped last time. So when we go into the interactive section, we will take some quick decision that will enable both parties to know that this conciliation process is temporarily at an end of a stanza. In his address, NLC president, Ayuba Wabba however said labour wasn’t aware of any court order stopping the peaceful protest or strike action.He said, “when we met here on Thursday, we could not conclude the discussion. First is the fact that government presented their positions, we also presented ours. Therefore, it was concluded that there was need for consultation and the meeting was adjourned till Monday.”As you said, this particular session was conveyed under emergency circumstance because all of us are committed to social dialogue, that is why we are here. Some of our colleagues missed their flights so, they could not join us. Flight of some of them were cancelled.”I think it is good for me to respond to one or two issues. One is the judicial process that the honourable minister of labour mentioned. Let me say clearly, that as we sit here, labour has not been served any process.”Let us not forget that because, we labour unions are passionate about this issue, particularly the hike in electricity tariff, remember we had to seek judicial pronouncement and as I speak here, there is still a subsisting court judgement, Federal High Court in Lagos that said the increase is illegal, therefore, it should be set aside. I’m not sure that judgment has been respected up till today.”The TUC President, Quadri Olaleye also noted that the leadership accepted to be at the meeting because it is the culture of Labour that whenever there are  issues with any party, they will always focus on resolving the issues.He said, “and why we find ourselves in this situation is because we have been calling government attention to  all those things, but government is not giving attention. So, I want to appreciate government for coming to table to dialogue with us, and giving us the attention that we required. I think we have a stake in this country too because I have mentioned in the past that if we are part of the country, the government would have listened to us earlier before now.However the labour leaders have said that despite the agreement, the impact of the strike would still be visible today as most workers already mobilised will not go to work.
“We all  know that there is no way the effect will not last till noon, that would however serve as deterrent to government from taking labour for a ride. The same thing was done by Rivers State two weeks ago when we went to shut the state. The government was calling for a meeting at the last minute, which to me was not good enough,” one of the labour leader at the meeting said.

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Breaking : US cuts Nigerian non-immigrant visas to three months, single entry, With immediate effect

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The United States Department of State has announced an update to its non-immigrant visa policy for Nigerians.

According to a press release issued by the US Embassy in Abuja on Tuesday, “most non-immigrant and non-diplomatic visas issued to citizens of Nigeria will be single-entry visas with a three-month validity period.”

The new visa restrictions take immediate effect.

However, the embassy clarified that, “those US non-immigrant visas issued before July 8, 2025, will retain their status and validity.”

The statement emphasised that this move is part of the Department’s global visa reciprocity process, which the embassy described as “a continuous process and is subject to review and change at any time, such as increasing or decreasing permitted entries and duration of validity.”

The US explained the rationale behind the policy update, noting that “US visa criteria and standards are designed to protect the integrity of US immigration systems.”

The embassy added that “these standards are based on global technical and security benchmarks.”

According to the embassy, the US Mission is working with Nigerian authorities to meet these benchmarks.

“The US Mission is working with the Government of Nigeria to ensure that Nigeria can meet the criteria,” the statement said.

Examples of these standard criteria include “Secure Travel Documents: Ensuring countries issue secure travel documents with verified traveler identities.

“Visa Overstay Management: Implementing measures to limit overstays by travelers on US visas, and Information Sharing: Sharing relevant security and/or criminal record information to protect public safety.”

Despite the new restrictions, the embassy reaffirmed its diplomatic relationship with Nigeria.

“The United States values its longstanding relationship with Nigeria and remains committed to expanding our partnership based on mutual respect, shared security priorities, and economic opportunity, keeping both our countries safer and stronger,” the statement read.

The embassy also expressed support for ongoing Nigerian reforms, stating, “We commend the ongoing efforts by the Government of Nigeria’s immigration and security agencies to meet standards of international best practices.”

Nigerian travelers were advised to comply with visa regulations.

“Nigerian travelers are encouraged to respect and adhere to the terms of their visas, and ensure travel documents are authentic, accurate, and up to date,” it added.

The embassy concluded with a reaffirmation of its engagement with the Nigerian people and government.

“The United States remains a committed partner in deepening people-to-people ties with Nigeria via business, educational, and cultural exchanges.

“We look forward to continued cooperation at all levels with the Nigerian public and government officials to ensure safe and lawful travel between the United States and all countries,” it said

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JUST IN: Abuja Primary School teachers suspend strike after Wike’s N16bn intervention

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The FCT wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers has announced the suspension of its over three-month-old strike by primary school teachers, with a directive for members to return to classrooms starting Wednesday, July 9, 2025.

The decision follows the intervention of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, who convened a stakeholders’ meeting on Thursday, July 3rd, to address the lingering impasse.

This was contained in a communique dated July 4th, 2025, made available to our correspondent on Tuesday.

Recall that Primary school teachers in the FCT had embarked on industrial action on March 24, 2025, over the non-payment of arrears and failure to implement the new national minimum wage.

The Minister had, however, last Thursday, resolved to use 10 per cent of internally generated revenue for the Area Councils to offset the salaries of the primary school teachers. https://punchng.com/fct-councils-forfeit-six-month-igr-to-end-teachers-strike/

According to the Communique signed by the NUT Chairman, Abdullahi Shafas, State Secretary, Margaret Jethro, and Publicity Secretary, Ibukun Adekeye, the Union said the latest offer from the FCT Minister provided a workable pathway to temporarily halt the action.

The SWEC, after reviewing the Minister’s offer, noted the “positive disposition of the Honourable Minister for taking over the payment of the Primary School Teachers emoluments by the FCTA”, and resolved to suspend the strike upon the release and disbursement of the N16 billion.

“Having deliberated exhaustively on the aforementioned offers, including the positive disposition of the Honourable Minister for taking over the payment of the Primary School Teachers emoluments by the FCTA, the SWEC-In-Session resolved to suspend the Strike action on the release of the N16 billion and its payment to the Teachers accounts.

“Consequent upon the implementation of the New Minimum Wage and payment of five months Arrears into the Teachers accounts today, 8th July 2025; the SWEC, hereby suspends the ongoing Strike action and
appeals to all Primary School Teachers in FCT to, with effect from Wednesday, 9th July 2025 return to the classrooms and continue with the Union intensifies more efforts to
their legitimate duties while ensure the settlement of the remaining entitlements.,”the communique read.

The union also extended its appreciation to stakeholders and supporters who stood by them during the industrial action.

“The SWEC – In Session wishes to use this medium to appreciate all members especially the Primary School Teachers for their unwavering support, solidarity, cooperation and prayers while the strike lasted.

“Our special thanks go to the FCT Royal fathers, Civil Society Organizations, and other well-meaning individuals who, in one way or the other intervened and stood by us during the strike.

“We equally wish to thank the National Head Office of our Union-NUT, the National and the FCT Council of the NLC for the support and guidance,” the communique added

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Breaking: Universities adopt 150 as cut-off mark for 2025/2026 admission and sets admission age at 16, Says Alausa

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Vice Chancellors of Universities in the country have adopted 150 as the minimum cut-off mark for 2025/2026 admission.

The decision was reached in a voice vote supervised by the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, on Tuesday at the ongoing policy meeting on admission in Abuja.

At the meeting, the minimum cut-off point for admission into polytechnics was pegged at 100, while the colleges of education and agriculture adopted 100 as the entry point.

Colleges of nursing adopted 140 as the entry point for admission

The Federal Government has formally set 16 years as the minimum age for admission into Nigeria’s tertiary institutions.

Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, announced this on Tuesday during the 2025 Policy Meeting of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board held in Abuja.

Alausa, while declaring the meeting open, emphasised that the age benchmark is now official and non-negotiable. He warned that any admission carried out outside the Central Admissions Processing System would be considered illegal.

The minister further stated that heads of institutions found culpable of admission fraud or circumventing CAPS would be prosecuted in accordance with the law.

The annual policy meeting sets guidelines for the conduct of admissions into universities, polytechnics and colleges of education for the coming academic session

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