In a press statement issued on Tuesday to mark the 2026 Eid-el-Kabir celebration, NLC President Joe Ajaero said the festive period should serve as a moment of sober reflection for both leaders and citizens.
“On behalf of the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), we wish all our Muslim brothers and sisters all over the world, especially in Nigeria, a happy Sallah celebration,” the statement read.
The labour union said the celebration was coming at a difficult time for ordinary Nigerians, stressing that “the working class and the poor majority are bleeding under the weight of neoliberal policies.”
According to the congress, “Our policy choices should then reflect this right understanding by placing workers over Capital and people over profit.”
The NLC urged government officials to examine the consequences of their policies on citizens, insisting that governance should focus on improving living conditions and security.
“We demand that those who govern us use this period for serious introspection about the impact of their policy choices. Governance is not about winning in the media or wishful thinking. It is about the security of lives and properties and the provision of basic necessities of life; food, shelter, healthcare, education, and decent work,” the statement said.
The union also expressed concern over worsening insecurity in the country, describing it as “a direct indictment on our governance model.”
“The worsening insecurity that now threatens the existence of our nation; from banditry to kidnapping, from herdsmen bloodshed to urban violence; is a direct indictment on our governance model. Nothing can hide the fact that millions cannot sleep with their eyes closed neither can they travel our roads freely without fearing for their lives,” it stated.
The congress said while workers and citizens have continued to make sacrifices, political leaders must also demonstrate commitment by prioritising the welfare of the masses.
“However, leaders ought to lead this charge for greater sacrifice and not gorge themselves full while demanding sacrifice from workers and masses who are already suffering,” the statement added.
Ahead of the 2027 general elections, the NLC warned that Nigerian workers and ordinary citizens would hold political leaders accountable for unfulfilled promises and economic hardship.
“We shall not forget the promises not kept, the brutalisation of peaceful protesters, and the deliberate impoverishment of workers under the guise of policy hard choices,” the congress said.
It added that “2027 must not be another theatre of elite-managed deception. It must be a moment of reckoning.”
The labour body urged Nigerians to use their votes against politicians and parties it described as anti-people.
“It must be a moment when workers, peasants, unemployed youth, and petty traders use their collective numerical strength and their ballots to reject every anti-people candidate and party,” the statement read.
The NLC also called on Nigerians to embrace grassroots mobilisation and political participation, warning that the labour movement would resist policies it believes undermine the future of citizens.
“We are entering a phase where every vote must be a weapon against hunger, insecurity, and exploitation,” the congress declared.
The statement concluded with Eid-el-Kabir greetings to Muslims, while urging Nigerians to remain committed to building “a Nigeria where the wealth of the nation serves the many, not the few.”
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