Organised labour in the chemical sector of the economy has demanded the reversal of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s recent policy on Form M in order to save players in the manufacturing sector from closing shop.
The National Union of Chemical, Footwear, Rubber, Leather and Non-Metallic Products Employees (NUCFRLANMPE) said it was important for the apex bank to have a second look at the policy as it had to do with access to forex. President of the union, Babatunde Goke Olatunji, who made the call at the union’s secretariat in Ogun State recently, said, in as much as CBN was trying to guard against the dwindling tempo of the economy, the effects of removing the third party from the chain were already taking a toll on the sector.
According to him, the inability of many companies to access forex and Form M will reduce accessibility to raw materials for production and this may force many companies to go down.
He said, “If there’s no letter of credit, there would be more problems in the sector. So, we want the CBN to save our industry as well as our jobs.
“Presently, the COVID-19 pandemic has really impacted negatively on the entire economy with so many job losses; any unfavourable policy from the government now will deal a further devastating blow on the economy.”
He explained that the union on its part has been into investments to survive the current state of the economy, which has shrunk the number of its members as well as finances.
The NUCFRLANMPE president, who was elected four years ago, said the profile of the union has been raised with the multi-million naira shopping complex, event centre and guest house embarked upon by his administration.
“When we came in four years ago, we discovered that the only way to survive would be to join the league of other organised labour unions who have diversified into businesses as means of survival,” he said.
He expressed hopes that the delegates’ conference of the union coming up on Thursday, September 24, would give the incumbent National Administrative Committee (NAC) opportunity to request for another term to consolidate on their achievements.
He charged the Federal Government to save businesses as well as Nigerians from the adverse effects of the latest hikes in the price of fuel and electricity. Olatunji said it was a double blow on the sector because the higher the cost of production of essential products, the higher the consumer would pay on the final products and that would will not be good for the economy.
He urged government to come up with workable policies to ensure adequate supply of electricity in the country, noting that poor electricity supply has contributed to the destruction of industries in Nigeria, which in turn encourages smuggling.
Olatunji said it was only good governance that could address poverty in Nigeria, and not collective bargaining.
“Employers alone would not tackle economic challenges without good governance that would help rebuild industries and reduce poverty level in the country,” he said.