Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
A former national President of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) Williams Akporeha, has kicked against a directive by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) asking its affiliate unions to boycott the inauguration of Working People United (WoPU), a group campaigning for the re-election of President Bola Tinubu in 2027.
Akporeha, who is the National Coordinator General of WoPU, described the directive as anti-democratic and an infringement on the constitutional right of Nigerian workers to freedom of association.
In a statement signed by Akporeha and the organisation’s General Secretary, Moses Oladapo, WoPU said the directive issued by some persons in the NLC hierarchy, amounted to an attempt to dictate the political choices of workers.
The group said it was reacting to a circular directing presidents and general secretaries of NLC affiliate unions to boycott the inauguration of its Lagos State chapter, which was scheduled for last Wednesday.
WoPU said the directive was particularly objectionable because its members had the constitutional right to associate with organisations of their choice, stressing that the NLC could not determine the political affiliation of individual workers.
The group cited Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees the right of every person to assemble freely and associate with others, including belonging to a political party, trade union or other association for the protection of their interests.
It also relied on International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions 87 and 98, arguing that workers should be free to establish or join organisations of their choosing without intimidation or discrimination.
“The NLC’s directive is an affront to the Nigerian Constitution and international labour standards. No organisation, no matter how powerful, has the right to tell Nigerian workers which associations they can join,” WoPU stated.
It argued that the NLC was a federation of individual unions with their respective constitutions and organs and therefore no single individual or group within the Congress could claim the authority to dictate the political choices of all Nigerian workers.
WoPU accused some NLC leaders of attempting to compel workers to support the Labour Party (LP) and a particular presidential candidate, describing such alleged efforts as inconsistent with the freedom of association guaranteed by the Constitution.
The organisation also rejected the description of WoPU as a parallel labour organisation, explaining that it was a political movement comprising workers across the formal and informal sectors, artisans, traders and other working people.
It said WoPU was established to mobilise working Nigerians around good governance and support Tinubu’s re-election under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
The dispute followed a query issued by the NLC to the Chairperson of its Lagos State Council, Agnes Sessi, over her involvement in the planned inauguration of WoPU’s Lagos chapter.
In the query dated August 11 and signed by NLC’s Head of Information and Public Affairs, Benson Upah, the Congress accused Sessi of promoting a parallel organisation, undermining the NLC, acting contrary to its rules and regulations and betraying the oath of office she took as chairperson.
The NLC asked her to explain within 24 hours why disciplinary action should not be taken against her.