By Victor Ahiuma-Young

SIX days after Mr. Ayuba Wabba of Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria, MHWUN, was declared the new President of Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, facts have emerged showing that the total votes announced in the election was higher than the total number of delegates accredited.

This came as aggrieved affiliates yesterday insisted that there was no going back on their resolve to conduct a special delegates’ conference this weekend for a credible election to elect true leaders of NLC, even as the aggrieved unions have also intensified preparation for the conference.

One of the unions, National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria, NUTGTWN, accused some immediate past leaders of NLC and its secretariat, headed by Dr. Peter Ozo-Ezon, of playing a major part in the perceived manipulation of results of the election. Recall that the NLC Election Returning Officer and Pioneer General Secretary of Congress, Aliyu Dangiwa, had in the wee hours of Saturday announced Wabba as winner, having scored 1,695 votes against Ajaero’s 1,400.

This results was also confirmed by the advertorial the NLC General Secretary placed in a national newspaper on Monday, March16. Chairman of the Credentials Committee that conducted the election, Dr. Isa Fagge, told Vanguard that 3,005 delegates and not 3,119 as earlier advertized by NLC secretariat, were accredited to vote, saying two unions did not turn up for the election. According to him, 10 votes were voided with the agreement of Wabba and Ajaero’s agents.

General Secretary of NLC, who was also the Secretary of the Credential Committee, Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson, corroborated the chairman on the number of voided votes and accredited delegates, insisted the declared results as announced by the returning officer at the venue of the election and published by him in some national dailies, were the outcome of the election.

Meanwhile, the aggrieved unions yesterday met to finalize preparation for the conference, where one of them told Vanguard that they had got to a point of no return. “This is about our movement, about the future of Nigerian workers and about upholding truth, rules, regulations and constitution,” they said. Recall that aggrieved 23 unions had rejected the outcomes of the election, claiming they were manipulated to favour certain individuals.