ORGANISED labour in the nation’s Steel and Engineering sector, has called on the Federal Government to intervene on the plight of over 500 workers of AKS Nigeria Limited allegedly forced out of job for the past three months by a Receiver/Manager purportedly acting under an Ex-Parte Court Order.

Under the umbrella of Steel and Engineering Workers’ Union of Nigeria, SEWUN, the workers claimed they were forced out of the Odogunyan, Ikorodu, Lagos, based factor on December 21, 2011, by armed policemen, Oodua Peoples’ Congress, OPC, and thugs on the ground that the receiver/manager, one Ajayi Olusegun,  needed two or three days to take inventory of the factory.

Speaking on behalf of the aggrieved workers, Branch Chairman of SEWUN in AKS, Andrew Ebere alleged that on the fateful day miscreants and policemen were brought in to force all the workers – both Nigerians and foreign nationals out of the factory located at Plot 27, LSPDC Industrial Estate, Ikorodu.

According to him, workers who reported back to duty after two days were prevented from gaining entry into the factory by security at the gate without any explanation, saying “on December 21, 2011, some group of people including policemen and Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) stormed our factory premises at about 9:30 am, locked all offices and drove all staff out including expartrate staff on the order of a purported ex-parte order granted to them by Justice Okeke of Federal High Court, Lagos without our knowledge.”

“Olusegun thereafter proceeded by sacking all the workers both Nigerians and foreign nationals without paying us our entitlements as permitted by law. The ex-parte order of the court as claimed was not served on any officer of the company neither was it posted on the wall of the factory.

Worse still, the supposed motion on notice was not served on us neither was it posted on the wall of the factory. The situation has remained so till date. He has now constituted himself as a permanent manger knowing well that the Ex-parte Order appointing him expired since January 6, 2012.”

The union Chairman appealed to the labour minister to intervene in the matter and ensure that all workers were recalled without further delay stressing that all efforts by the national secretariat to resolve the issue proved abortive.

Ebere called on the Labour Minister to set up an enquiry into the circumstances leading to the takeover, saying “we want to go back to work on existing conditions of service. If they do not want to take us back, they should pay us all our benefits based on existing labour laws.

We have going through pains. Our rights have been cruelly violated and abused. We can longer meet our responsibilities to our families. The government should not fold its hands and allow us to suffer unnecessarily.”