Nigeria unions urge more fuel hike protests

Jan 10, 2012, 12:05 GMT

Abuja - Nigerian unions urged people on Tuesday to keep up protests against the removal of fuel subsidies, which has sparked a second day of strikes that paralysed the country after talks between President Goodluck Jonathan and workers failed to make progress.

Three people were killed in demonstrations on Monday, when an estimated 8 million people took to the streets to protest a government decision on January 1 to stop subsidies on imported petrol, prompting fuel prices to double to 0.80 dollar per litre.

'Day one of the strike was largely successful,' said Abdulwaheed Omar, president of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC). 'The government must reverse its decision; people are suffering.'

Omar condemned the police crackdown on protesters and urged those demonstrating to do so peacefully.

Nigeria's riot police tried to break up a large protest in the capital Abuja, where 15,000 extra policeman were deployed.

Although some companies urged their workers to resume work on Tuesday or risk being sacked, the NLC said workers' rights must be respected.

Jonathan continues to defend the decision to remove the subsidies, stressing that it will free up cash to spend on infrastructure and social services. He launched the first phase of a public transportation plan in Abuja on Sunday with 1,100 buses.

But many protesters view the move as an afterthought.

'Why did he not launch those buses, and put other measures in place before removing the subsidies?' said demonstrator Matthew Igwe.

'Jonathan is being misled by his economic team, even if the subsidy scrap is meaningful,' said university lecturer Alice Bako. 'It doesn't reflect the realities on ground.'

Traffic returned to the streets of Abuja Tuesday, but many shops and businesses remained closed.