Police Foil Planned Take Over Of LP Secretariat By Protesting Workers

By Ayodele Oni

The false alleged ambition of the Chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress, (NLC), Joe Ajaero,  to become the National Chairman of the Labour Party, (LP) is tearing apart the party.

There was an attempt on Wednesday by Nigeria Labour Congress to picket the National Secretariat of LP in Abuja. This was, however, aborted by the Police who barricaded the entrance.

Some workers had  invaded the National Secretariat of the Labour Party in Abuja to protest the Party’s National Convention planned for March 27, 2024. The NLC is also insisting on the sacking of the National Chairman of the Party, Barrister Julius Abure.

The NLC leadership accused Abure of planning to hold a “secret” Convention without the inputs of major stakeholders. The NLC is one of the stakeholders.

The planned Convention has pitched Abure against the NLC and the House of Representatives caucus of the Party with the workers accusing Abure of planning to destroy the Labour Party.

The  political wing of the NLC had kicked against Abure and the NWC over the planned national convention in Umuahia, the capital of Abia State, on March 27.

It said in a statement:

“That given the intransigence of the National Chairman of the Labour Party to unilaterally hold a National Convention of the Labour Party, financial rascality and contempt for the leadership of the NLC, the NLC State Councils and State Political Committees should mobilize workers to picket all the State Secretariats of the Labour Party, scheduled for Wednesday, 20th March 2024.”

The convention was said to be aimed at re-electing Abure as the sole administrator of the Labour Party, with concerns of secrecy surrounding the event.

The political wing of the NLC insisted that the planned convention was illegal and is demanding the immediate resignation of Abure as the party chairman.

It, also, called for the formation of a caretaker Transition Committee to organize a legitimate and all-inclusive National Convention for the party.

However, the LP leadership opposed the directive, alleging that it was driven by alleged Ajaero’s supposed desire to become the next National Chairman of the Party, an allegation Ajaero’s close allies dismiss as “absolute bunkum.”

Said one of them to The Source: “How is it possible that Ajaero would  want to walk away from the very high profile office of the NLC President to go and become the Chairman of the Labour Party? How can? It is not true. Ajaero has no such ambition, please.”