As state governors increasingly leave their states to live permanently in Abuja, leaving their citizens to struggle economically, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has voiced alarm.
NLC President Joe Ajaero said this at a town hall meeting with NLC Secretariat employees in Lokoja, Kogi State.
In order to alleviate the mobility challenges faced by workers in the state, the NLC leadership visited the state to commission ten compressed natural gas (CNG) buses.
Ajaero promised to relay the workers’ complaints to the state governor after the event gave them a chance to voice their concerns.
But he complained that governors were largely missing from the five zones he had visited thus far.
Governance Affected by Governors’ Absence
Criticizing the state of affairs, Ajaero said: “But there is an issue we are facing in trends since most governors are now staying in Abuja continuously. Kogi is roughly the fifth zone out of the five that we have now gone to. We have only met one state’s governors. The fact that they are in Abuja every time you visit has an impact on government.
He emphasized that for democracy to have any real significance, the people must be able to reach their leaders. “I believe we should be able to run the center and the units so that people can communicate with their leaders and feel the feeling of democracy and its dividends.”
The NLC would try to convey the requests of the workers to the governor, Ajaero added.
But, he went on, “If we catch all of these things, the information you give us will depend on the governor’s presence.” If he’s present, we’ll let him know about you. If he is not present, we pass it to whoever he intends to send.
NLC’s Strategic Value of Kogi
According to the NLC President, Kogi State is particularly important to the labor movement because both Governor Usman Ododo and his deputy have union experience.
The deputy governor had previously served as a representative of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), and Ododo had previously served as an NLC official in Niger State.
“So, we want to establish this as a town hall meeting to hear what you have done and what hasn’t been done correctly, so we take it to them,” he said.
In addition, Ajaero said, “To us, it is like homecoming,” the visit provided a chance to evaluate the government’s performance. We wish to visit and engage with them in order to determine whether they are engaging in the behaviors for which we are critiquing others.
Illegal Labor Union Prohibition in Kogi
In response, Ajaero declared the previous administration of Governor Yahaya Bello’s ban on labor unions in state-owned tertiary institutions to be unlawful.
Because labor problems are under the Exclusive Legislative List, he contended, state governments do not have the power to outlaw unions.
Read Also: Iyabo Ojo Reacts as Ex-Husband Misses Daughter’s Wedding in Tanzania
According to the Constitution, union practices are covered by the Exclusive Legislative List. You don’t outlaw what you can’t control, hence no governor has the authority to do so.
The registrar of trade unions is responsible for registering unions nationwide. He said, “What are you now prohibiting? They may decide to have branches in states for administrative convenience.”
At the meeting, workers told Ajaero that the state’s Colleges of Education, Technology, and Nursing, as well as Kogi State Polytechnic and Kogi State University, had prohibited labor unions for more than ten years.
Employee Requests
In particular, workers requested the NLC to address the following urgent issues:
– The failure to implement yearly wage increases
Absence of housing options for employees
There are severe shortages of teachers in elementary and junior secondary institutions.
Workers were encouraged to continue fighting for their rights by Ajaero, who promised that their complaints will be addressed by the authorities.
