News

A general strike in Nigeria over the removal of a fuel subsidy has seen shops, offices, schools and petrol stations closed. Thousands marched in Lagos and other cities, including the capital Abuja, against the elimination of the subsidy, which has doubled fuel costs.



UNI Global Union affiliate the Radio, Television & Theatre Workers’ Union (RATTAWU) is one of the unions leading the strike action organised in conjunction with the Nigerian Labour Congress and its other affiliates.

Union leaders say the strike will go on indefinitely. They are urging President Goodluck Jonathan to go back on the decision to remove the fuel subsidy which they say is unfair and hitting ordinary people the hardest.

In the capital, Abuja, trade unions and civil society groups organised a march and protesters closed the airport.

Fuel and transport costs doubled after the subsidy ended on 1 January, angering many Nigerians, who saw it as the only benefit they received from the country's oil wealth.

Most of Nigeria's 160 million people live on less than $2 a day, and the price increases have affected them severely.

"With these increases, the cost of transport has gone up and this has also affected the cost of food, and the basic necessities of life, such as rents, school fees and medical bills," said Chris Uyot, a spokesman for the Nigeria Labour Congress, one of the strike's organisers.

UNI stands in solidarity with RATTAWU and all the unions involved in the strike action.