12 January 2012, Sweetcrude, ABUJA – Labour leaders entered their first talks with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday since a four-day-old nationwide strike began and after oil workers vowed to shut down crude production.
More than a dozen labour leaders entered talks with Jonathan, Vice President Namadi Sambo, Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Senate President David Mark and seven state governors.
They did not comment upon entering the meeting, which included the heads of the two major Nigerian labour confederations, the NLC and TUC.
The strike and protests this week have been over soaring fuel prices resulting from a government policy which ended fuel subsidies on January 1.
Oil workers vowed earlier in the day to begin shutting down production of Africa’s top crude exporter on Sunday, piling intense pressure on the government ahead of the talks.
While the strike this week has paralysed the country and brought hundreds of thousands of people out into the streets in protest, oil workers have so far not moved to halt production of crude — the country’s economic lifeblood.
