BY FUNMI KOMOLAFE, VICTOR AHIUMA-YOUNG & JOHNBOSCO AGBAKWURU
NIGERIA Labour Congress, NLC, has been torn apart by the list of delegates to the national conference that will be inaugurated by President Goodluck Jonathan next Monday in Abuja.

This came as an affiliate of NLC, the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, NUP protested its exclusion from the list of delegates representing NLC.

NUP in its protest letter to the Federal Government through the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Anyim Pius Anyim, by its President, Dr. Abel Afolayan questioned the rationale behind the nomination of six delegates from the retired Permanent Secretaries to represent the entire retirees across the nation.

Afolayan in the protest letter, which was copied to the Head of Civil Service of the Federation and the President of NLC claimed he was writing on behalf of over one million pensioners in Nigeria who are members of the union.

The letter read in parts, “We consider it necessary to direct our complaint to the office of the SGF because it is the office charged with the responsibility of compiling the list of the delegates to the national conference. It is on this note that we wish to draw your attention to the Federal government’s release of the list of delegates to  the national conference which  indicated that retired civil servants were given six slots to the national  conference.”

Members of the Central Working Committee of NLC, one of the highest decision making organs of congress were seriously upset that the leadership of NLC did not consult affiliate unions for input before sending the names of delegates to the Presidency.

Last Thursday, the Central Working Committee of the NLC made up of affiliate unions in a heated debate rejected the list as it is only made of those who constitute the National Administrative Council, NAC.

A dependable source at the meeting said the NLC leadership in a bid to pacify the angry CWC members told them that the NLC had protested to the Presidency that the NLC and the TUC should not be allotted 12 delegates each.  Consequently, CWC members were told that the NLC and the Presidency had agreed that TUC’s delegates would be reduced to eight and the remaining four would be NLC delegates.

CWC members were told that the additional four would be taken from affiliate unions.

However, CWC members were taken aback when the list was released by the Presidency, where both the NLC and the TUC has 12 delegates.

Those representing the NLC are, NLC President, Abdulwahed Ibrahim Omar,  Ag. General Secretary, Chris Uyot, Kiri Mohammed, Deputy President,  Joe Ajaero, Deputy President, Promise Adewusi, Deputy President , Issa Aremu, Vice President,  Lucy Offiong, Vice President,  Ayuba Wabba, national treasurer,  Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson, Economic Adviser and Head of Research, Emma Ugboaja,  Head of  Aministration, NLC headquarters, and Michael Olukoya, President, Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, and Comrade  Ibrahim Khaleel.

Except for  Ibrahim Khaleel and Michael Olukoya, all others are members of the National Administrative Council of the NLC.

On the other hand TUC delegates are  President, Bobboi Bala Kaigama,  Secretary- General, Barrister Musa Lawal, Mrs. Dinatu Asibi Assani, Olasanye Oyinkan, Sunday Olusoji Salako, President  of Association of  Senior Staff of Banks and Insurance  and Financial Institutions, ASSBIFI.

Others are Olakunle Olanrewaju Olaitan, immediate past President of Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, ASCSN, immediate past president of TUC, Comrade Peter Esele, Augustine Etafo, Maryam Jummai Bello, Hassan Salihu Anka, Bede Opara, President of Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies, SSAEC, and Aliyu Musa.

A source, who attended the NLC’s CWC meeting confided in Vanguard, “you needed to see what happened at the meeting. Members were very annoyed that we were not consulted in the selection of the delegates representing NLC. We told them that it should not happen again. Look at the list, besides the fact that most of the delegates are members of the National Administrative Council, NAC, some of them their memberships are just a handful.