MARGARET CHIDERA
ABUJA, Nigeria – The Minister of Labour and Employment, Simon Lalong, has come under intensive criticism following accusations of plots to undermine the critical Labour-Federal Government agreement of October 2.
Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in a statement signed by its General Secretary, Comrade Emmanuel Ugboaja, said the Minister threw a spanner in the wheel of the implementation of the Labour – Federal Government Agreement by his unmasked partiality in handling a critical item in the agreement which is the apparent Government meddling in Trade Union matters.
The Congress said that what informed their opinion was the Minister’s alleged siding with people, who had illegally seized the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), headquarters with police support.
Ugboaja said that it was now obvious that the Federal Government did not negotiate in goo faith, and was never genuinely committed to honoring the terms of the October 2, Agreement.
Furthermore, the NLC Scribe said that the minister’s action serves to affirm the congress earlier apprehension that the State was manoeuvering to orchestrate a coup d’état against the democratically elected NURTW leadership, potentially alluding to the support of the Government, as suggested by Minister Lalong’s actions and statements.
“This group is now being encouraged to conduct its own Delegates’ Conference, both zonally and nationally, to confer legitimacy to their action. This flagrant act not only constitutes an egregious intrusion into the internal affairs of a Union, in violation of ILO Conventions 87 and 98, but also represents a clear attempt to sabotage the recently ratified agreement between the Labour movement and the Federal Government.
“It is unfathomable that a Federal Minister of Labour, tasked with safeguarding the rights and interests of diverse stakeholders in our industrial relations landscape, would opt to take actions that could undermine the very foundations of our collective engagement. The Minister’s decision, which is clearly morally reprehensible and legally untenable, marks a disheartening departure from the expected standards of conduct within the nation’s industrial relations sphere.
“Despite initial assurances from the Minister regarding the illegal occupation of the NURTW’s National Headquarters, the democratically elected leadership, led by Comrade Tajudeen Baruwa, has not been reinstated. Instead, the Minister has chosen to endorse and legitimise this hijacking with the State’s backing. This blatant power grab, subverting legality and moral integrity, is an affront to the principles of democratic governance.
“There is no doubt, both to us and the Nigerian public, about the Government’s intentions regarding the implementation of the October 2, 2023 Agreement. It is evident that, akin to the NURTW issue, the execution of other facets of the Agreement may be jeopardised. Therefore, we take heed of Minister Lalong’s actions, which flagrantly violate an accord responsibly endorsed by all involved parties.
While accusing the Federal Government of engineering the NURTW leadership crisis through the Police, aiding the Lagos group, who were members of the Lands, Parks and Garages Commission in Lagos state, not the NURTW to forcefully occupy the unions headquarters in Abuja, the Ugboaja said that Comrade Tajudeen Baruwa’s leadership was democratically elected, adhering to union statutes, the national laws and ILO Conventions.
Meanwhile, the Secretary said that the NLC firmly rejects Minister Lalong’s endorsement of the holding of illegal Conferences.
Adding that any deviation from the spirit of the prior Agreement on this matter forebodes grave consequences.
“The government can not flout ILO conventions, the Constitution, and our statutes with impunity and believe that all will be quiet.
“As Minister Lalong recklessly steers our nation towards an industrial crisis, we pledge unwavering resistance to all forms of malfeasance and misconduct within Nigeria’s trade union sphere. We will marshal our resources to ensure that political interference and lawlessness do not corrupt leadership selection processes within the trade union sector.
“Minister Lalong having descended into the arena has stripped himself of the moral high ground and authority to continue mid-wifing the process of implementing the October 2 Agreement. We will therefore be highly constrained to attend any meeting he calls for the purposes of the implementation of that Agreement. A minister of Labour is supposed to be an arbiter and as expected to provide professional guidance to the Government on this matter instead he chose to contaminate the process with the same level of politics of the murky waters playing out in the larger polity.
“We implore the President to rein in Minister Lalong, and if this does not occur, we will conclude that the Minister’s actions align with the President’s directives.
“Our allegiance is to upholding the Rule of Law and democratic principles, even if the Minister chooses to disregard them. We will continue to stand by the democratically elected NURTW leadership, working with them as the legitimate representatives of workers in their sector, to thwart those seeking to contaminate the trade union sphere with political machinations. Every avenue will be explored to shield the trade union movement from this emerging irresponsibility.
“We steadfastly uphold the provisions of the October 2, 2023 Agreement, and any continued non-compliance after 30 days will compel our relevant bodies to take necessary actions. The onus now rests with the Government to either honor the essence of the Agreement or persist on Minister Lalong’s perilous course, inevitably leading to a national industrial crisis. The blame for such an outcome will squarely fall on the Minister of Labour, Mr. Lalong.”
