NLC shuts down Labour Party national secretariat, as power tussle deepens

…Union accuse Abure of organizing secret convention

…Ajaero using Union for 2027 political goals – Abure

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on Wednesday shut down the national secretariat of the Labour Party (LP) as the power tussle between the President of the NLC, Comrade Joe Ajaero and National Chairman of Labour Party, LP, Comrade Julius Abure deepened.

Members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) staged a protest on Wednesday, March 20, at the national headquarters of the Labour Party (LP) in Abuja.

The NLC, led by Comrade Ismail Bello, the acting general-secretary, demanded the resignation of the national chairman, Barrister Julius Abure, stating that the protest was a clear expression of their dissatisfaction with the current party leadership and its perceived departure from the party’s core principles.

They accused Abure of using the party for personal gain and deviating from its original mission to advocate for the working class and the betterment of Nigerians.

One of the key grievances cited by the NLC was Abure’s alleged planning of a secret national convention for the Labour Party without involving the NLC. This action was seen as a betrayal of the party’s values of solidarity and unity. The NLC also criticised Abure for running the party in a “sole administrator” fashion, which they claimed was causing internal strife within the party.

In response to these allegations, the NLC passed a vote of no confidence in Abure and called for his prompt resignation. They also called for the establishment of a caretaker transition committee to oversee a transparent and inclusive national convention for the LP, adhering to proper procedures from the ward to the national level.

However, the Labour Party has pushed back against the NLC’s actions, threatening legal action against the congress. In a statement issued by the National Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party, Obiora Ifoh, the LP accused the NLC of conducting a personal vendetta against Abure. The LP described the NLC’s actions as criminal and a misplacement of priorities.

The LP also criticised the NLC’s president, Joe Ajaero, accusing him of greed and inordinate ambition. The LP questioned Ajaero’s leadership, stating that he had failed to address critical national issues such as poor workers’ wages, high inflation, and insecurity in the country.

The Labour Party further argued that the NLC’s claim of ownership of the party was unfounded, as a political party is owned by its card-carrying or financial members. The LP also accused the NLC of politicising its leadership and abandoning its primary responsibilities of defending Nigerian workers.

As tensions between the NLC and the LP escalate, the future of the Labour Party’s leadership and direction remains uncertain. The NLC’s call for a change in leadership and the LP’s resistance to these demands have created a standoff that could have significant implications for the party and the broader political landscape in Nigeria.

In the same vein, the National Chairman of the LP, Comrade Julius Abure, has told the President of the NLC, Comrade Joe Ajaero not to use the platform, funds and resources of the NLC to pursue his ambition of either becoming the president of the country in 2027 or Governor of Imo State.

Abure stated this at Asaba, Delta State on Wednesday while reacting to the shutting down of the Labour Party’s National Headquarters by protesting members of the NLC who demanded for his immediate removal as National Chairman of the party.

He said the “picketing” of the party’s office was politically motivated, describing it as a show of rascality and abuse of office and the laws of the land.

He said, “I must state today that the leadership of NLC under Joe Ajaero is on the part of destroying the successes we have recorded in the 2023 general election.”

“I had expected that as a responsible trade union centre, a responsible labour leader; number one should have teamed up with the Labour Party to see how we can team up together to make the country better.

“Unfortunately and ironically too, the NLC is the one that is on the path of war against the Labour Party. I must state clearly that Ajaero as NLC President has not been able to organise a successful strike action. Not even a single protest or even picketing the government establishment in order to bring the government to accede to the numerous requests of workers.

“As we speak, there are unfair labour practices meted out to workers by several organisations in the country. I have not seen Joe Ajaero go to such organisations to picket them.”

While reiterating that Joe Ajaero is not a registered member of the Labour Party, Abure said the party is not owned by NLC as claimed by the labour union.

He said: “Over the past few years, NLC has been claiming ownership of Labour Party. l must state clearly that NLC is not the owner of Labour Party. The party is not owned by NLC.

“The law is very clear that you cannot picket an organisation where you do not have your workers. We are not the employers of NLC and they don’t have the legitimate reason to picket our office.

“We have no trade union dispute with NLC, there is no notice issued to us that we have a trade union dispute with NLC. This is clearly an abuse of office and abuse of the laws of the land,” He emphasised.