The Assembly of Trade Unionists and Labour Veterans in Lagos State on Friday demanded immediate resignations of national president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joe Ajaero, as well as that of the national chairman of the Labour Party (LP), Barr Julius Abure.
The veteran labour leaders and trade unionists called for the resignations over what they described as “an endless tussle for the control of the party.”
They accused Ajaero and Abure of deliberately abandoning the constitutional responsibilities in their respective offices to pursue personal aggrandizement rather than the collective welfare of Nigerian workers as glaringly indicated in the “unfolding crisis” rocking the apex leadership structure of Labour Party.
The labour leaders at a press conference addressed in Lagos State, the Assembly premised its call for Ajaero’s resignation on his failure to “rise up to the challenges demanded by his office” despite what it described as “overwhelming cases of financial recklessness” brought forward by the treasurer of the Labour Party against the party’s National Chairman, Abure.
The Assembly’s Spokesman and former NLC’s National Vice President, Comrade Isah Tijjani also accused the duo of Ajaero and Abure of focusing their full attention on petty rifts, and avenue which he said the federal, states and Local Governments leveraged on to “optimally exploit” Nigerian workers through the introduction of unpalatable economic measures that would keep them and their families in a permanent state of abominable penury.
Tijjani, a former NUPENG’s National Dept. President, said his Assembly was grossly discomforted by the situation, stressing that such amounted to a, “callous and complete abandonment” of the constitutional duties and core responsibilities duly bestowed upon the leaders.
“The abysmal failure of the leaders of the Labour unions and the Labour Party to provide credible challenges to these anti-people policies are indeed sufficient basis for Nigerian workers to demand their resignation, without any further delay”.
