Workers Day: Nigeria Declares Monday, May 1 Public Holiday 

Nigeria’s Federal Government has declared Monday 1st of May as Public Holiday to mark this year’s Workers Day celebration.

The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, made the declaration on behalf of the Federal Government in a statement titled “Solidarity Forever: Celebrating the Collective Strength of Nigerian Workers.”

The Minister quoted from the International Trade Union Anthem to express deep solidarity with the Workers of Nigeria.

He congratulated workers across the country on this year’s celebration.

Aregbesola commended workers for their resilience, hard work, diligence and sacrifice noting that their contributions are essential  for the greatness of the country and her dignity.

According to the Minister: “There is dignity in labour.  The nation will continue to celebrate workers’ dedication and commitment to work because their services are vital to nation building.”

Aregbesola therefore enjoined workers to imbibe the culture of productivity, saying “The end of work is productivity. It is productivity that leads to value creation, satisfactory provision of goods and services and wealth creation. It is therefore the path to national and individual prosperity”

He urged workers to raise the bar of their trade in line with the  best tradition of workers as boldly declared in the last stanza of the Union Anthem which says “In our hands is placed a power greater than their hoarded gold, Greater than the might of armies, magnified a thousand-fold; We can bring to birth a new world from the ashes of the old, For the union makes us strong” and President Muhammadu Buhari’s commitment to Security, Economy and Transparency, which is geared towards ensuring good governance and patriotism.

Aregbesola assured Nigerians that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is focussed on the security of life and property of every citizen and foreigners in the country and will not slow down in any area, even as the administration winds up.

The Minister relayed President Muhammadu Buhari’s request for Nigerian workers to extend the support and cooperation that this administration enjoys to the incoming administration. 

The Minister also commended all security agencies for the successes recorded in the fight against criminals across the country; he encourages them not to relent but go all out to deter the criminals whenever they raise their heads.

He urged Nigerians to be vigilant and report suspicious individuals and activities to law enforcement agencies nearest to them, noting that security is everybody’s responsibility. He urges them also to make use of the N-Alerts Application on Android and iOS, while wishing all workers happy celebration.

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

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