Ali Chiroma

Ali Chiroma (27 February 1933 – 2 April 2024) was a Nigerian trade unionist who was president of Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) from 1984 to 1988.

Life and career Chiroma spent his early years in Maiduguri, Borno State. He attended Yerwa Elementary School and Borno Middle School (1945–1949). He trained as a medical field assistant and worked in Jalingo and Mubi. In 1977, he was principal School of Health Technology, Maiduguri. Chiroma joined trade unionism at the age of seventeen and was president of the Rural Health Workers Union in 1960. In 1978, after many smaller trade unions were coalesced into forty two industrial unions, Chiroma became deputy president of the Medical and Health Workers' Union of Nigeria. However, his tenure was more known for the protest against the removal of fuel subsidy. The adoption of a structural adjustment programme (SAP) by President Babangida which favored market forces meant subsidies for fuel consumption was likely to be removed. Chiroma's NLC coordinated rallies with state chapters in protest against the removal of subsidies while Chiroma criticized and opposed many of the elements of SAP. In December 1987, leadership of NLC were detained and the government increased pressure on NLC to withdraw its opposition to the elements of SAP. In 1988, division within the NLC provided the opportunity for the government to disband the leadership and elect a sole administrator.