The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has expressed concern over Nigeria’s rising debt profile, urging the Federal Government to urgently address the issue before it gets out of hand.
President of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, Festus Osifo raised the alarm that the level of borrowing was growing on a daily basis, noting that the amount of money required to keep servicing Nigeria’s debt was growing on a daily basis.
He said this in a communique read at the end of the National Executive Council meeting of the TUC on Tuesday in Abuja.
The 2024 presented by President Bola Tinubu has an aggregate expenditure estimated at N27.50 trillion.
Details of the budget showed that the government budgeted N8.25 trillion (30 percent) for debt servicing in 2024.
According to the Debt Management Office (DMO), Nigeria’s total public debt rose to N87.38 trillion in the second quarter (Q2) of 2023, recording an increase of 75.29 percent.
Addressing reporters, Osifo said: “We are worried by the state of our debt; our debt is continuously increasing and this has put a huge burden on us. This year’s budget is a deficit budget – the level of borrowing is growing on a daily basis and the amount of money we require to keep servicing this debt is growing on a daily basis in such a way that the amount of money we require to service this debt is catching up with our revenue and this is problematic.
“Whilst we are being told that the debt to GDP ratio is accommodating, the debt to revenue is worrisome and we want the government to look into this as fast as possible.
“We want the government to look into the hardship in the land. Things are hard and the people are suffering. We want governments at all levels to tighten their belts.”
He also warned the federal government to with immediate effect, pay all federal civil servants their N35,000 wage award as agreed during a meeting that was held after the removal of fuel subsidy.
Osifo said the TUC had it in good authority that workers had only received the one month meant for September, and that only a few workers had been paid for the second time.
The TUC president also warned all the 36 state governments across the country and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to “tighten” their belts in assuaging the plight of workers occasioned by the removal of fuel subsidy in order to avoid a fresh crisis in the country.
He said: “We want the government to tighten their belts, government at all levels – the federal government, the state and local governments because a situation where they are asking Nigerians to keep tightening their belt and they (government officials) are living in affluence is not acceptable.
“On wage award, payment has been made once. As we speak, our members in the Federal Civil Service have not received the wage award since October. We call on the government to fast-track all the processes. We learnt that they are currently putting things in place to pay this money but people are not ready to listen to excuses. All we want is that this money should keep hitting the accounts of our members until the new minimum wage is put in place.
“We thank the government for the ones it has paid but it has stopped paying. We call on the government to remove all the bottlenecks that are being experienced today with regard to the wage award.
“We also call on the state governments to do the same. We hail state governments that have agreed to pay the N35,000 wage award. For those who are running away from paying this amount or from providing palliatives to our members they are only posting the evil days because our members are hungry.
“We call on state governors and the minister of FCT to pay a fixed sum to all Nigerian workers. We also encourage those in the private sector to provide succour to workers. The private sector should imbibe wage award as agreed with the Federal government.”
He said the TUC has admitted five new unions into its fold – Law Officers Association of Nigeria; Congress of University Academics (CONUA); National Association of Medical and Dental Academy; National Butchers Employers Association of Nigeria; Association of Telecoms, Information Technology, Cable and Satellite Network and Operators and Allied Services Employers of Nigeria.
“These are the five new affiliates of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria as approved by NEC,” the TUC president added.
He added that all issues which led to the Congress holding a factional national delegate conference have been resolved.
He added that a new delegate conference will be held before the end of the first quarter of 2024.
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