By Victor Ahiuma-Young

There is no doubt that a cabal has now been fully entrenched at the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, secretariat.

President Goodluck Jonathan (2nd right), with Labour leaders and Labour minister, Emeka Wogu (left)

This cabal is made up of individuals masquerading as labour leaders, but in actual sense, are wolves who use the toga of being “unionists” to feed fat on the pains of workers.

They are chameleons using the NLC platform to “secure their future” to the detriment of the struggling and impoverished Nigerian workers.

The reaction to Labour Vanguard publication on August 10 on the appointment of General Secretary of NLC has exposed members of the cabal as very dangerous who can go to any length to achieve their selfish and parochial interests.

Before the cabal’s reaction to the said report aimed at making the secretariat serve Nigerian workers better, it was gathered that the cabal extensively discussed how to respond to the report at the secretariat.

But as usual, when they decided to respond, instead of coming out in the open, they used a fictitious “Augustine Tanko” to portray themselves as people who are truly afraid of their shadows.

One had expected them to at least, address the issues raised in the report, but their pathological hatred for the truth blindfolded them into dishing out fallacies, fabrications, unsubstantiated claims that the report was among others, “full of mischief and obviously aimed at causing disaffection and dissonance in the labour movement” while pretending ignorance of the knowledge that their activities have long caused disaffection and dissonance not only in the labour movement, but also weakened the solidarity with civil society allies and mass support Congress has enjoyed over the years.

While the identities of members of the cabal will be unmasked ahead of the February conference if they do not retrace their steps, because normally their atrocities heighten before conference, one is forced to disabuse the minds of those who might have read the so-called rejoinder against the August 10 report which the mailing method and those mailed to clearly betrayed the source of the rejoinder.

The ignominious antecedents of members of the cabal are well documented and still being documented, and at the appropriate time, the individuals will be named and shamed. In fact, in a saner society, these individuals should be behind bars and may indeed be in no distant future.

To start with, the perceived “anti NLC posture of Vanguard newspaper” and claims that Vanguard’s “Labour Page handlers have extant motifs to destroy the Nigeria Labour Congress under Comrade Abdulwahed Omar” is not only laughable, but a desperate attempt to blackmail the “Labour page handlers”.

Omar leadership of NLC

Since 2007 when the Omar-led NLC emerged, if there is any Newspaper in Nigeria and reporters, who have brought the positive activities of Congress to the fore, it is the Vanguardand Labour page handlers.

Those parading as the so-called Augustine Tanko should visit the NLC library for confirmation.

Indeed, Vanguard is a reference Newspapers for researchers on NLC. Those that have been trying to destroy the NLC under the leadership of Omar, are members of the cabal whose stock in trade is to undermine or take undue advantage of the good intention of open minded individuals for personal aggrandizement.

Under Comrade John Odah as the General Secretary of Congress, especially ahead of the 2011 conference, they did it to fix themselves in strategic positions after the conference.

During the short tenure of Comrade Owei Lakemfa as the Acting General Secretary, they were at their best and presently, they are almost out of control running down some aspirants in favour of others ahead of the February conference.

It is sad that while they privately undermine leaders of congress, they openly praise sing them to attract favour. One may not be far from the truth to say Comrade Omar might have realized some of the antics of this cabal that he personally writes most of serious statements coming out from NLC.

It is a common knowledge to Labour editors, correspondents and reporters that Congress statements no longer has depth besides those by Comrade Omar.

Gone are the days when statements by Congress are journalists’ delight where one could write several stories from different angles with depth in one statement from NLC. Today, what one gets is a statement lacking information and appeal.

Another obvious revelation of the famous “Augustine Tanko” tagged labour analyst and retired unionist, is the cabal hatred and disdain for one of the Vice Presidents of Congress and General Secretary of National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria, NUTGTWN, Comrade Issa Aremu.

Though one is in no position to hold brief for Comrade Aremu who may not have read Augustine Tanko’s façade, or alternatively, may have dismissed it for what it is, one is however surprised that Augustine Tanko that wrote from a point of familiarity with the author of the August 10, report, could shamefully claimed that the author of the said report merely put his byline on the report.

What an insult! The problem with people parading themselves as Augustine Tanko is that they are so much involved in treachery that they have lost every sense of reasoning. The luck they have is that journalists such as the author of the August 10 report have shielded and continue to shield their true identities from the public.

These are peoples paid by the Nigerian workers to fight for them, but because of avarice, have been compromised beyond redemption.

While this will be a topic for another day, the question is why has NLC lost the bite and capacity for positive activism and pro-workers, and to a lager extent, pro-masses appeal?

Today, oppressed workers prefer to take their complaints of unfair labour practices to civil society organizations instead of NLC. In those days, employers would think twice before initiating and implementing policies considered anti-labour for fear of confrontation with NLC through its anti-casusalisation committee, but today, the revise is the case.

Employers have not only pursued anti-labour policies with impunity, while sadly, people like Augustine Tanko are busy taking bribes to securing their future.

Documents abound how members of this cabal received and have continued to receive bribes to enslave workers.

These people are nothing but buccaneers. Congress till today has a standing anti-casualisation committee, but it has refused to function because of members of this cabal.

In almost all sectors of the economy, casualisation, outsourcing and contract staffing have become the new employment policy by employers including government establishments, hapless workers are left to lament their plights, while Congress has continued to look the other side.

At the time of this piece, some state governments and private sector employers have refused to implement the N18.000 minimum wage signed into in 2011.