THE six employees of the now defunct United Labour Congress (ULC) are to be absorbed into the staff structure of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) following the reconciliation and merging of the two centres yesterday, Thursday July 16, 2020, in Abuja after a joint meeting of the parties at the Paschal Bafyau Labour House National Headquarters of NLC, National Record can authoritatively report, as contained in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the two parties.
This is in addition to the MoU creating four temporary positions to accommodate the leadership of the returning ULC members into the leadership structure of the NLC. These temporary positions include a Deputy President, to be occupied by Comrade Joe Ajaero, who was President of ULC; a Vice President, allocated to Comrade Williams Akporeha; a National Auditor, in the person of Comrade Kasimu Kadiri; and Ex-Officio, taken by Comrade Kasimu Kadiri.
These positions, the MoU stated, are to be held until the next Delegates Conference of the NLC in 2023, when positions statutorily recognised by the constitution of the NLC shall be contested for.
In the effort to effectively consummate the reconciliation, both parties agreed under Clause v of the MoU to create a three-person committee composed of Comrade Emma Ugboaja, General Secretary of NLC, Comrade Nasiru Kabir, who is the President of NUT, and Chairperson of NLC’s Establishment Committee, and Comrade Williams Akporeha, President of NUPENG, to “profile the six staff of ULC and fix them appropriately within the staff structure of Congress.”
Other concessions granted the ULC in the MoU include two of its officers to be admitted to State Administrative Councils (SACs) of NLC “in states where ULC has reasonable presence in the positions of a Vice Chairperson and a co-opted member” while its (ULC’s) Women Committee officers are to “be admitted into the Congress Women Commission with their Chairpersons at the national and state levels becoming co-opted members.”
While conceding to the ULC these positions, the MoU however noted that the NLC “shall not bear any liabilities incurred by ULC prior to the signing of this Memorandum of Understanding.”
In terms of check off dues payment, the MoU, under clause vii stated that “Unions that make up ULC shall commence remittance of check off dues to Congress from July, 2020 and shall consequently be bound by the financial rules and regulations of Congress as it applies to affiliates. For the purpose of the 2023 Delegates Conference financial computations, the percentage ratio of the years that will be paid by the affiliates starting from July shall be applied to reflect payments done under the 16 months in ULC.”
The signatories to the MoU include, for the NLC, Comrade Ayuba Wabba mni, Dr Nasir Idris, Comrade Najeem Yasin, Comrade Ibrahim Khaleel mni , and Comrade Emma Ugboaja. For the ULC are Comrades Joe Ajaero, Akporeha Williams, Kasimu Kadiri, Kabir Gusau and Didi Adodo.
Below is the full text of the MoU:
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
This Memorandum of Understanding between Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) (hereinafter referred to as “Congress”) and trade unions operating under the banner of United Labour Congress (hereinafter referred to as “ULC”) is hereby entered into on this 16th day of July, 2020, in Abuja, Nigeria.
PREAMBLE:
A misunderstanding that led to some unions leaving the fold of NLC arose from the conduct and outcome of the leadership election at the Quadrennial Delegates Conference of the NLC in 2015.
Efforts to assuage the aggrieved Comrades arising from this were made by Labour veterans led by the first President of Congress, Comrade Hassan Sumonu with the support of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole who waded into the matter, but could not successfully resolve the issues to a logical conclusion.
With the weaning strength of the veterans’s intervention, the parties resorted to direct dialogue over the impasse and apparently achieved more mileage in efforts to resolving the situation.
The report of these efforts were presented to the 2019 Delegates Conference of the NLC and the good reception the report garnered led to a resolution of the Conference to empower the new leadership to pursue vigorously the reconciliation efforts with mandate to commit Congress responsibly in order to reintegrate ULC including creating offices into NAC to accommodate them up to the next Conference in 2023.
There is now a mutual consensus to scale up activities and service delivery to all sectors without prejudice, realizing that there is power in oneness.
To prevent the reoccurrence of the 2015 debacle, the parties agree to an all-inclusive process that reflects our diversity in leadership emergence.
It is therefore in furtherance to this that the Memorandum of Understanding is drawn.
Whereas:
a. The NLC is the most representative Labour centre in Nigeria and has its leadership choosing conference every four years,
b. ULC represents trade unions who had issues with the process and outcome of 2015 Conference and have since abstained from the activities of the NLC, including the 2019 Conference, alongside some freshly registered trade unions.
A process of reconciliation which spanned about five year has now resolved the said strained relations, with a determination to build a strong, united Nigeria Labour Congress and it is hereby agreed as follows:
i. That ULC led by the former Deputy President of NLC, Comrade Joe Ajaero has committed to return to full participation in the affairs of Congress as full affiliates of Congress.
ii. That the unions in ULC are to nominate a Deputy President, a Vice President, an Auditor and a co-opted member that will form part of the current National Administrative Council (NAC) of the NLC.
iii. That two officers will be admitted to the SAC of Congress in states where ULC has reasonable presence in the positions of a Vice Chairperson and a co-opted member.
iv. That Women Committee officers of ULC will be admitted into the Congress Women Commission with their Chairpersons at the national and state levels becoming co-opted members
v. That a three-person committee made up of Congress General Secretary, Congress Chairperson of Establishment Committee and NUPENG President will profile the six staff of ULC and fix them appropriately within the staff structure of Congress.
vi. That Congress shall not bear any liabilities incurred by ULC prior to the signing of this Memorandum of Understanding.
vii. Unions that make up ULC shall commence remittance of check off dues to Congress from July, 2020 and shall consequently be bound by the financial rules and regulations of Congress as it applies to affiliates. For the purpose of the 2023 Delegates Conference financial computations, the percentage ratio of the years that will be paid by the affiliates starting from July shall be applied to reflect payments done under the 16 months in ULC.
viii. That positions created into the Congress Structure in clauses i-v above shall lapse at the expiration of the current tenure of the Congress leadership in 2023.
ix. That the current leadership structure as captured in the Congress Constitution shall be applied in filling positions of elective offices of Congress in 2023.
x. That the parties commit to pursue a reinvigorated action in defence and protection of the rights and welfare of Nigerian workers moving forward.
Signed for Congress Signed for Congress ULC
1. Ayuba Wabba, mni 1. Joe Ajaero
2. Dr Nasir Idris 2. Akproeha Williams
3. Nojeem Yasin 3. Comr Kasimu Kadira
4. Com. Ibrahim Khaleel, mni 4. Kabir Y. Gusau
5. Emma. Ugboaja 5. Didi Adodo
