The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) recently issued a joint statement, setting a deadline of May 31, 2024, for the Federal Government to reverse the increase in electricity tariffs.
This decision was made during their National Executive Council meeting, where they strongly condemned the unilateral tariff hike, citing its adverse impact on the already burdened masses and the disregard for legal provisions.
They specifically called for the immediate reversal of the tariff hike and the reevaluation of the categorization into Bands, aiming to alleviate the hardships faced by Nigerian workers and citizens.
The NLC, TUC, and their affiliates had previously staged nationwide protests, including grounding offices of the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), in response to the tariff hike.
The NERC had announced the increase on April 3, affecting Band A customers, who would now pay N225 per kilowatt-hour, a significant jump from the previous rate of N68/kWh, representing a 240% increase.
This move aimed to remove subsidies for Band A customers, comprising approximately 15% of the total 12.82 million power consumers nationwide.
The Federal Government defended the decision, citing projected savings of N1.5 trillion and promising up to 20 hours of daily power supply for Band A customers, effective April 3, 2024.
