Petrol Tax: Strike Looms As TUC Issues Warning

The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has issued a stern warning to the Federal Government, threatening a total nationwide strike over a proposed five per cent tax on petroleum products.

In a strongly-worded statement released on Monday, TUC President General, Festus Osifo, and Secretary General, Nuhu Toro, condemned the planned levy as an act of “economic wickedness.” The union argues that the tax would inflict greater hardship on Nigerians who are already struggling with the severe economic impacts of the petrol subsidy removal, soaring food prices, and a rapidly depreciating naira.

The statement declared that workers and citizens are still reeling from the existing economic pressures and that introducing a new levy would be a deliberate move to “compound suffering, cripple businesses, and push millions of citizens deeper into poverty.”

It further accused the government of using Nigerians as “sacrificial lambs for its economic experiments” instead of providing much-needed relief, jobs, and solutions.

The TUC has therefore issued an ultimatum, urging the Federal Government to “immediately stop this anti-people’s plan in its entirety.” The union vowed that failure to do so would leave it with no alternative but to mobilize Nigerian workers and the masses for a total nationwide resistance, explicitly stating that a strike action is “firmly on the table” should the government proceed with the policy.