The National Council for Muslim Youth Organisations (NACOMYO) has commended the Federal Government for shifting stance in the face-off with organised labour over the deregulation of  the downstream oil sector by reducing the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to N97.00.

NACOMYO’s national secretary, Alhaji Kamarudin Akintola, said in a statement that government action was in tandem with democratic doctrine and portrays Jonathan administration as people’s government.
                                                                                                                                                                                                 
NACOMYO lauded the government’s display of maturity over the atmosphere that pervaded the country in the last one week, stating that it should sensitivity on the part of government and that President Jonathan’s government had a listening ear.

It also lauded President Jonathan’s directive to the anti-graft agency to go after perpetrators of corruption in the downstream oil industry, saying it was a step in the right direction as it would bring sanity to the corruption-ridden oil sector.

The Muslim youth apex body also gave NLC, TUC and civil society groups a pat on the back for fighting the cause to a logical conclusion, just as it paid tribute to National Assembly for its matured intervention in keeping with its mandate and democratic morality.                                                                                          
NACOMYO commended Nigerians for enduring the restrictions and hardship posed by the justified strike and protest, saying that it was the price for advancement. In its word, ‘the pains of today are the gains of tomorrow’. Pleading with traders and transporters not to make life unbearable for people through arbitrary increase of goods and commodities, the group enjoined Nigerians to brace up for challenges and sacrifice in the face of current realities and dwindling economy globally.                                                                                                 

Noting that it is not yet a celebration and that industrial harmony was a pre-requisite for good governance and blossom economy, NACOMYO enjoined all parties in the dispute to avail themselves of the fruitful dialogue and address other grey areas in the new policy and not without considering other shades of opinion and inputs of stakeholders in the downstream oil sector for flourish economy.

 As programmes often suffer at implementation, the organisation urged Federal and State governments to sincerely administer the much- said palliatives to have a meaningful impact on the citizenry.

The organisation posited that dialogue was an ingredient of administration and good governance and therefore urged the government to fast-track negotiation with ASUU and other aggrieved industrial unions in the country for reconciliation to avert decay, collapse and for posterity.

The Islamic faith body also admonished unions to seek other options at resolving industrial disputes by exploring arbitration process, noting that the strike weapon which government seems to understand is unwholesome, just as it undermines development and weakens nation’s economy.

NACOMYO further reminded the government that accountability, transparency and peaceful co-existence are sine qua-non to achieving the objectives of the deregulation policy as well as actualisation of SURE-Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme and therefore challenged FG for re-invigoration of its corruption crusade and, to aggressively address insecurity which has reached alarming proportion and taking a terrorist dimension.