By NewsBits
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Has Denied Disobeying Any Court Order Ongoing Strike. The NLC further stressed that there was nothing like violation of the court or contempt of the court order.
The General Secretary of NLC, Comrade Emmanuel Ugboaja said since the unions were not served with the court order as was required of them by law, there was no way they should be said to have disobeyed any court order. He said they only learnt of the court order from pages of newspapers rather than being served with the order as the law demands.
According to him, “We went ahead as planned as nobody served us with the court order and we would not be liable to any contempt of court order.” It would be recalled that the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, on Friday, restrained the NLC and TUC from embarking on the strike.
Benedict Kanyip, the judge, who is also the president of the court, ordered the two Labour union centres to stop their industrial action scheduled to commence today 14 November 2023.
The interim order followed an ex-parte request by the Nigerian government through the office Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, following the Labour unions’ threat to embark on strike after the NLC president, Comrade Joe Ajaero, was manhandled in Imo State on 1 November 2023.
Ruling after listening to Federal Government’s lawyer, T.A Gazali, a Senior Advocate Nigeria, the judge said, “Section 7(1)(b) of the NIC Act 2006 empowers this court to hear matters relating to the grant of any order to restrain any person or body from taking part in any industrial action, or any conduct in contemplation or furtherance of the industrial action. Section 19(a) of same Act then empowers this court to grant urgent interim reliefs.
“This Court has over the years interpreted these provisions as authorising this court to grant exparte orders restraining, an industrial action that is threatened, and so yet to commence, as is the present threatened industrial action of November 14, 2023. This being so, the instant exparte application succeeds, and is hereby granted.”
He, therefore, ruled: “An order of interim injunction is hereby made restraining the defendants/respondents, their members, their agents, employees, workmen, servants, proxies or affiliates from embarking on the planned industrial action and or strike of any nature pending the hearing and determination of the claimant/applicant’s motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.”
The labour unions and the government had been at loggerheads over the latter’s removal of fuel subsidy and the attendant difficulties being experienced by workers. In June, the National Industrial Court, in an interlocutory injunction, stopped the Labour unions from embarking on any strike action pending the determination of the substantive suit.
But the latest threat by the labour unions to embark on strike is a fallout of the dispute between them and Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State.
It would be recalled that the two leading reasons for this strike include the ongoing loggerhead with the Imo State Government led by Senator Hope Uzodimma over anti-workers activities, and the attacks on both the media and NLC President on Wednesday November1, 2023.
The efforts to compel Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma to resolve all lingering issues snowballed into full blown strike today, Tuesday November 14, 2023 as the demands of the two unions were not met as 12 midnight on Tuesday.
It would be recalled that the NLC along with the Trade Union Congress (TUC), threatened to embark on a nationwide strike from Tuesday, 14 November, over an attack on NLC helmsman, Comrade Joe Ajaero in Imo State on 1 November 2023.
The leadership of the two unions reached the resolution after an extraordinary National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in Abuja on Monday 13 November 2023.
In a communique issued after the NEC meeting and signed by NLC Deputy President, Comrade (Prince) Adewale Adeyanju, and Trade Union Congress (TUC) President, Comrade Festus Osifo, the unions said it resolved to order the immediate withdrawal of services and shutdown of Imo State beginning midnight Tuesday.
“All workers and affiliates are expected to ensure compliance from wherever they are. All flights into and out of Imo State, fuel supplies and electricity be stopped immediately as applicable. All Public and Private Sector workers are to immediately down tools indefinitely.
“That if our demands are still unmet, workers all over the federation shall join in withdrawing their services by Midnight Tuesday, the 14th of November 2023. All State Councils of NLC & TUC and affiliates are by this resolution mandated to ensure full compliance with NEC’s decision,” the unions said.
The NLC had earlier called on workers in Imo State to embark on a state-wide strike on 1 November. While declaring the strike, the president of NLC, Joe Ajaero, said the industrial action was in protest against “the persistent and deliberate violations of the rights and privileges of workers in Imo State by the State Government.”
“As a result, we are left with no choice but to embark on mass protests and industrial actions beginning on the 1st day of November 2023.”
There was an uproar in Imo State on Wednesday November 1, 2023 as the industrial disharmony which was meant to be a peaceful thing turned into outright condemnation when hired thugs and police officers reportedly attacking Joe Ajaero and some journalists who had assembled at the union’s council secretariat ahead of their planned protest in the state.
The national leadership of the NLC later alleged that Ajaero was arrested by police operatives in the state while in a swift reaction, the police said they only took Ajaero away as a way to protect him from further attacks. The union also accused the state governor, Mr Uzodinma, of mobilising the thugs and the officers to attack and arrest the NLC president to frustrate the planned protest in the state.
“What has happened in this ugly coincidence is that the national president of the Nigeria Labour Congress is from Imo state and has not been able to demarcate the difference between being a national leader of an organisation and then an interested party in local politics,” Mr Uzodinma said at the presidential villa on Thursday in Abuja after receiving the flag of his party, the All Progressives Congress, from President Bola Tinubu, as a mark of endorsement for the governor’s re-election bid.”
