The negative public reactions and commentaries that have trailed the abruptly terminated 11th NLC Delegates conference election on Thursday morning of February 12, 2015 are inversely related to the age-long positive accolades and appreciation for the past best democratic practices of the NLC in defence of the rights of workers and the public. Nigerian public has legitimately shown that it can reward best practices with appreciation and sanction uncomradely behavior with damnation. My phone and IPad in-boxes are full of unprintable adjectives qualifying the televised conduct of some NLC delegates following the discovery that the names of some candidates appeared in some of the ballot booklets in more than one and two places.
Some of the uncomplimentary adjectives included such that critical comrades like me had once used to describe the unacceptable televised images of some legislators and Honourable members of the Federal House of Representatives jumping fences to make a point.
Happily Comrade Abdulwaheed Omar the President of NLC had since apologized for the unusual conduct that was clearly not in labour character in recent times.
Bjorn Beckman is a Swedish political economist and development scholar. He has published extensive original works on trade union performance and workers power in Nigeria. According to him, ‘expressing dissent, organising alternative opinions, challenging those in power, and contesting for office are all central features of a democratic process’. His conclusion is that trade unions in Nigeria have passed all these democratic tests.
In a country in which parties and party formations were once long prohibited by the military, only unions have been vehicles for democratic expression at work places and larger society. Unions had held periodic elections, removed elected leaders and routinely re-elected new ones at a time it was unpopular to do so in the larger society.
In February 2003 NLC successfully organised its 8th Delegates’ Conference. In February 2007 and 2011, NLC successfully held 9th and 10th quadriennial Delegates elections respectively. With the forthcoming rescheduled national presidential elections, Nigeria commendably marches on the road to the 5th Republic 45 years after independence. Comparatively it is remarkable that NLC has inaugurated 10 elected executive leadership in the past 37 years of its formation (NLC came into being in 1978).
Congress’ recent delegates’ conferences were adjudged as the most democratic in international labour movement. No party convention in Nigeria was as organised. Almost the whole day of the two-day conference was devoted to moving motions and counter motions by affiliate industrial unions on issues at work and society (job-creation and job retention, education and health, HIV, women participation and non- labour issues like democratization in Africa and US-Iraq war, privatisation etc.) Few hours were often spent on elections of officers that were mostly unopposed. What was good for the NLC also proved same for its 43 affiliate industrial unions.
I recall that unions that come from industries with challenges such as Nigeria Union of Railway Workers (NURW) and textile workers union had held successful delegates’ Conference and passed democratic tests. The lesson NLC had taught Nigerians until recent times is that if contest for leadership is about service, there will always be contestation about how to get the job done, but consensus about who should do what will not be farfetched.
NLC had also successfully conducted state council elections in all the 36 states and the Federal Capital. Not in one state was there a report of ‘rigging’ and discordant views that have since dominated the national politics since the recent series of elections.
What then went wrong with the 11th Delegates Conference of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) held between Monday 9th to Wednesday 11th February 2015 at International Conference Centre, Abuja ?
NLC had achieved the remarkable democratic successes in the past because it strictly adhered to its constitutional provisions with water-tight rules guiding election nominations, clearance of candidates by its Credential Commmittee, early preparation and transparent balloting processes supervised by its veterans and international friends. The recent failed election is a product of a departure from time honored rules and conventions. The seeming casualization of rules guiding elections and open-ended self serving interpretation of the Constitution of the recent weeks is totally alien to the NLC. Again the lesson is that where power and power retention is about sacrifice, violence and acrimony and abuse of constitutional process must give way to enduring mutually rewarding outcomes.
However despite all its televised shortcomings with respect to elections, the 11th Delegates Conference is still remarkably successful. The conference had a colourful opening ceremony on Monday February 9, 2015 which was well attended by the 3,119 delegates drawn from the 42 industrial unions affiliated to NLC, a good number of observers, international guests and other invited guests. It was the highest in terms of number of delegates in the history of Congress. The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Pius Anyim represented the President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. The Presidential Candidate of the All Progress Congress (APC) and former Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari also attended the opening ceremony. Also at the opening ceremony was former President of NLC and governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. Others include trade union veterans namely the founding President of NLC, Alhaji Hassan Sumonu, founding General Secretary, Comrade Aliyu Dangiwa, former President of NLC, Comrade Ali Chiroma, former Acting General Secretary of Congress, Salisu Nuhu Mohammed, immediate past General Secretary, Comrade John Odah, former Deputy President of Congress, Comrade Lawrence Peterside, former Treasurers, Mr. Ero Phillips and Ivor Takor and other veterans that include Comrade Sylvester Ejiofor among others.
Also at the opening ceremony were the employers association represented by the Director General, Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) Mr. Oshinowo and international guests from Ghana TUC, Kenya, Brazil, Cuba, Organisation of Africa Trade Union’s Unity (OATUU), International Trade Union Congress (ITUC), UK, ITUC Africa represented by the General Secretary, Kwasi Amankwah, International Trade Union Confederation, Brussels and representative of Director General ILO, diplomats among others.
Issa Aremu mni
