Labour Party carpets Ajero over picketing of secretariat

…Says unlawful break, entry into LP office, criminal act

By Jude Opara, Abuja

The Labour Party (LP) has taken a swipe at the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) over what it described the unlawful break and entry into its national headquarter, accusing the organized labour of causing a colossal destruction of properties, adding that it was a criminal act, and a misplacement of priority and an action done in bad fate.

The party in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh said 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 federal government.

Ifoh, wondered how Ajaero would lead a ‘band of lawless’ persons who are known to have partisan interests in other major political parties such as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) against the LP.

He further discredited the claims that the Labour Party belongs to the NLC, saying that such was not supported either by the Constitution or the Electoral Act.

“Ajaero’s continuous claim that 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 percent 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 organization can own any other organization. The NLC as an organization can therefore not claim the 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 that 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 LP further alleged that the present NLC leadership is politicized and has left its primary responsibilities of defending Nigerian workers and has delved deeply into partisan politics, describing it as a bad omen for the working community.

“What we saw today appears to be a personal vendetta against the national chairman, Julius Abure who they called several unprintable names including labeling him a thief. We are certainly going to take legal action on matters of libel” Ifoh vowed.