•Abure
The Comrade Julius Abure-led National Working Committee of the Labour Party has decried what it described as the unlawful break and entry into its national headquarters by “the militant arm of the Nigeria Labour Congress.”
According to the party, the NLC raid led to the colossal destruction of party property describing the act as a criminal misplacement of priority and an action done in bad fate, reports Vanguard.
The National Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party, Obiora Ifoh, while reacting to the picketing of the party headquarters by the Joe Ajaero-led NLC today, said the party was appalled by the desperation exhibited by the NLC President.
Ifoh said, “The party notes that the President of the NLC, Comrade Joe Ajaero’s greed and inordinate ambition have pushed him into losing every sense of discretion and decency in his recent conducts, be it in his affairs with the workers or even the government.
“As a party, we wonder how Ajaero would lead a band of lawless persons who are known to have partisan interests in other major political parties such as the PDP and APC against a recognised independent political party.
“Ajaero’s continuous claim that the NLC owns the Labour Party is not in any way supported by either the Electoral Act or the Constitution.
“For his information, a political party is owned by those who are card-carrying or financial members of the party.
“We are aware that more than 90 per cent of the members of the NLC have not met this condition and therefore cannot claim to be the owners of the party.
“The constitution also provides that no organisation can own any other organisation. The NLC, as an organisation, cannot therefore claim ownership of the Labour Party.
“Today, Nigeria is witnessing the worst economic strangulation ever in the history of Nigeria.
“Issues such as poor workers’ wages, high inflation, and insecurity with Nigeria turning to a hobbesian state, yet after a year of his assumption of office, Ajaero has chosen to ignore all these national challenges.
“It would interest you to know that Ajaero’s NLC is yet to successfully picket any federal government establishment.
“His attempt to extend his rascality to Imo State was met with a higher and brutal force. Unfortunately for us in the Labour Party, we do not command any force, unlike the NLC, which is now encouraging militancy within its ranks.
“By its own constitution, the NLC cannot even call for a picketing of any establishment without a directive of its NEC, but what we saw was a political committee acting out an illegal script by Ajaero.
“The committee has no legal right to call an action in the nature of picketing or breaking and entering into a political party where most of them are not even members.The present NLC leadership is politicised. It has left its primary responsibilities of defending Nigerian workers and has delved deeply into partisan politics, and this is a bad omen for the working community.
“We have earlier advised Ajaero to emulate leadership of Ayuba Waba, Olaleye Quadri, and Festus Osifo, who had or currently passing through a similar route, and still maintain a working relationship with the party.
“We are, however, reviewing today’s criminal actions and disruption of activities in our national headquarters with our legal department for further action.
“What we saw today appears to be a personal vendetta against the national chairman, Julius Abure, whom they called several unprintable names, including labeling him a thief. We are certainly going to take legal action on matters of libel.”
Earlier, workers under the aegis of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, picketed the headquarters of the Labour Party, LP, insisting that the party’s national Chairman, Julius Abure, should resign and go.
The NLC also said that it would insist that workers take over their party expected to act as a viable opposition to guard against the country plunging into dictatorship.
Speaking when workers occupied the Labour Party headquarters in Abuja, the Deputy President of the NLC Political Commission, Dr Theophilus Ndubuaku, explained that the picketing was to express workers grievances towards Abure’s administration in the party.
He said, “Nigeria is not the only country that has a Labour Party backed by organised labour. There are so many others.
“Why would our own be different? The essence of registering a Labour Party in this country is not only to become a president or hold an office but to create a viable opposition, and any country where there is no viable opposition, then there would be dictatorship.
“The reason we set up this party is to make us have good governance in this country.”
While faulting the alleged unilateral convocation of national convention without consulting the relevant stakeholders, the NLC said, “There has been court judgements, declaring labour party as being owned by the NLC, and there has been intervention by INEC telling Abure to appoint BOT members and organise all inclusive conventions.
“But what we now saw is a convention that we do not know who and who are going to be at that convention, and the elected officers in the National Assembly thought that he insulted them.
“You will not believe that a day before Abure issued the notice of the convention, he was with the NLC president and the political commission in the NLC office without telling them.
“All we are saying is that we do not want Abure, he should resign and go. He cannot be the sole administrator of Labour Party.”
Also speaking, the acting General Secretary of NLC, Comrade Bello Ismail, said that the commission had been engaging Abure, thinking that he was following due process,
According to him, “We were also thinking that he was going to organise a convention in line with the understanding with Labour to have an all-inclusive convention, but Abure, knowing that he can never survive an all inclusive convention, wanted to do a convention in the night.
“Those in the NLC Political Commission has done a lot of efforts to reach this state of taking over our party by ourselves. We would insist that all democratic norms are fulfilled. We will insist that workers takes back their party.
“We want a convention where we are all the stakeholders, we are very active, and all will participate.
“We do not want a convention where one man will hand pick the officers of the party. We want a convention where in the 37 states of the federation, all stakeholders, including workers, youths, young people, informal workers can have a say in the party.
“We are not money people, but we have a voice, and we want a party where, without money, we can participate, and that is what Labour Party offers.
“Now it is in the hands of this usurper, he is looking for N30 million, N40 million, and so on to buy forms, excluding the people who founded the party.
Enough is enough; Abure must go.”
On his part, Chris Uyot, Secretary of the NLC Political Commission, said the national chairman of the party has decided to go and hold a convention without consulting, without discussion with the stakeholders of the party.
Comrade Uyot said, “He did not discuss with the NLC or with Labour, or even with the House of Representatives who are stakeholders in the Labour Party, he did not discuss with anybody; he did not discuss with the Obidents, all the people that belong to this party or even have a stake in this party.
“So, he wants to go and have a convention where he will pick people as delegates. No, it is not done. A convention starts from the local government areas, before it goes to the states and then the national.
“We are not going to have a dictator in our party; it is not going to be possible. Nigerian workers are democratic, and they support democracy.
“Nigerian workers own this party and would ensure they take hold of their party and will drive out the looters.”
