The Nigeria Labour Congress has decided to halt the protest and has given an extension to the ultimatum until the 13th of March.
The Labour, in a communique at the end of its National Executive Council meeting, said the objectives of the protest were achieved on the first day of the demonstration.
“Consequently, NEC-in-session resolved as follows: to suspend street action for the second day of the Protest having achieved overwhelming success thus attained the key objectives of the two-day protest on the first day,” the communique partly read.
Nigeria is battling rising inflation, food inflation, forex crisis, economic hardship and high cost of living occasioned by the removal of petrol subsidy, attracting protests in parts of the country.
The Presidency had engaged labour leaders in a last-minute talks on Monday night but the meeting ended in a stalemate as the NLC insisted that the protest was going to hold.
Subsequently, the NLC grounded economic activities across the country on Tuesday, with labour leader Joe Ajaero, saying that the protest was about hunger and not just a clamour for a review of the minimum wage.
“You have to understand it. This protest is about hunger. What of those who are not working? The minimum wage, when will it be completed? When will it be implemented? What will be the minimum wage that will remove hunger?” Ajaero queried.
However, in its communique late Tuesday, the first day of the protest, the highest organ of the NLC suspended “street action for the second day of the Protest having achieved overwhelming success thus attained the key objectives of the two-day protest on the first day.”
