Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, yesterday disowned people it claims are parading themselves as NLC leaders in Imo State, saying “Any other person or groups parading themselves as NLC leaders in the state are on a self frolic, on their own and are not officially known to us.”
In a statement yesterday by NLC’s General Secretary, Emma Ugboaja, Congress insisted that “The NLC has only one leadership in Imo State and that is the Caretaker Committee led by Comrade George Ofoegbu which emerged from the violent disruption of our State Delegates’ Conference held in March 2023 by agents of the Government of Imo State.”
According to the statement, “Our attention has been drawn to some news circulating in the Media concerning a misleading award that was said to have been given by our state Council Executives in Imo state to a Governor who has refused to implement fully the national minimum wage, owes workers arrears of salaries, pensioners owed years in pensions. Gratuities and allowances remain unpaid for years as other sundry infractions against workers.
“The NLC has only one leadership in Imo State and that is the Caretaker Committee led by Comrade George Ofoegbu which emerged from the violent disruption of our State Delegates’ Conference held in March 2023 by agents of the Government of Imo State. Any other person or groups parading themselves as NLC leaders in the state are on a self-frolic, on their own and are not officially known to us.
“We are not in the habit of giving awards to organisations, individuals and governments whose actions do not bring succour and comfort to workers. We do not honour those who dishonour workers and we truly do not have any love for those who flagrantly defy the basic ethics that protects the world of work. It is not in our tradition to embrace those that seek to enslave our members and any group that works with such individuals clearly shows that they are not part of us but an image of their creator.
“It is our responsibility to warn members of the public, institutions and our social partners that anybody that does any business with this creation of the Imo state Government on our behalf does so at his own risk. Those individuals do not represent us and no action of theirs has anything to do with us and the NLC will not be held liable.
“We advise that until otherwise decided, the Caretaker Committee remains our only representative in Imo State and our Social partners and institutions should continue to conduct our various engagements with them. We shall continue to stand with Imo state workers and ensure that they are delivered from the clutches of the current wickedness pervading the Industrial space in the state.”
