Workers’ welfare, my greatest priority – NLC Presidential aspirant

By Ochiaka Ugwu

A frontline contender for the position of president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joseph Ajaero has said that under his leadership if elected the NLC would fight for the demands of individual unions instead of allowing unions to struggle for their demands.

Comrade Ajaero who stated this yesterday during his campaign tours to the headquarters of different unions noted that the individual struggle by the unions is the reason behind the failures in agitations for workers’ demand by unions under the NLC.

Individual unions confront government alone without the collective pressure from other unions. That is basically the reason ASUU and ASUP strikes took a long while; that is why government is not yielding to the demands of the Joint Health Workers Union of Nigeria currently on strike. Under my leadership, the NLC will collectively engage in the struggle of individual members to mount pressure on government to grant their demands.”

Ajaero who is the incumbent Deputy President of NLC and President Nigeria Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) also stated that he had secured the highest pay package for workers in his union, even for those under privatisation adding that it is a landmark he would replicate at the NLC if elected.

During the tour, unions which had withdrawn their membership from the NLC due to grievances with the current leadership described the NLC presidential hopeful as the candidate with the most laudable programmes, promising to return to the union if Ajaero is elected president.

Recently, Ajaero was endorsed by the Labour Interactive Forum (LIF), a subsidiary of NLC composed of 30 unions who described him as their favourite candidate.