Barth Ndubuwah, Port Harcourt
Amid speculations that the recently elected Labour Party (LP) Governorship candidate and Chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Rivers State Chapter, Comrd Beatrice Itubo has been removed from office, she has cleared the air, insisting that she is still the chairman.
Fielding questions from journalists in Port Harcourt, Mrs Itubo said there is no truth in the rumour making the rounds of her removal from office as NLC Chairman.
According to her, the labour law does not provide that a serving elected officer of the union should vacate her position before contesting for political office.
Comrd Itubo said she could not understand the unnecessary desperation on the part of her Vice and other subordinates to oust her from office as Chairman when her tenure has not elapsed.
She debunked the allegations emanating from these desperate NLC members that she is using the labour secretariat for her political activities,when campaign has not started.
Itubo pointed out that Labour Party has a secretariat in Port Harcourt and she has her own campaign office too and wondered why she should now leave these offices and use NLC Secretariat for her political activities.
She described such story as false and malicious.
Describing her tormentors as ‘Lilliputians’,who she all made in labour matters . She appealed to them to comport themselves, assuring that if at any stage of her political career,she is overwhelmed by activities,she won’t hesitate to ask her Vice to hold brief.
Reacting to the sealing up of NLC Secretariat in Port Harcourt by men of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), the Labour Party Governorship gubernatorial candidate said there was no internal problem that would have warranted the presence of the NSCDC officers to block the NLC Secretariat.
She noted that if peradventure there is something like that,it has to be referred to its National Secretariat who will appropriately address the issue.
Itubo stressed that there was nothing like that at the moment.
“I had weathered through stronger storms in past,not to talk of this.There is nowhere in our Constitution that states that an elected official of NLC cannot remain in office and contest a political office.
“They said I am using Labour Secretariat to do campaign when campaign has not started. I don’t even know their problem and these are the people I brought up in NLC and is still nurturing them. No problem, the matter will be referred to our National Secretariat,”I Itubo said.