The disagreement between the two major labour centres in Nigeria has escalated into a public confrontation, with the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, and his Trade Union Congress (TUC) counterpart, Festus Osifo, exchanging accusations over the Federal Government’s N70,000 monthly transport allowance for public sector workers.
The dispute, which centres on the six-month transport palliative introduced by President Bola Tinubu’s administration, became heated during separate appearances by the two labour leaders on Channels Television’s breakfast programme.
The Federal Government had announced the N70,000 monthly transport allowance last Tuesday through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) reached after a meeting with NLC representatives in Abuja.
However, the TUC rejected the arrangement barely 24 hours after the announcement, arguing that Nigerian workers needed a permanent salary increase rather than a temporary financial intervention.
The TUC’s rejection prompted Ajaero to question why the organisation was criticising an agreement it was not directly involved in negotiating. He maintained that the TUC should have engaged the government separately if it had different demands.
Explaining how the agreement was reached, the NLC president said the allowance followed an ultimatum issued to the Federal Government over workers’ welfare.
According to Ajaero, the government requested four days to respond to the demands before both parties reconvened and reached an agreement.
He explained that the N70,000 allowance was included in the outcome of the collective bargaining process between the NLC and the government.
Ajaero subsequently criticised Osifo’s leadership of the TUC, describing him as an absentee president.
He alleged that the TUC president spends most of his time in the United States and only returns to Nigeria to attend meetings before travelling back abroad.
Ajaero also challenged Osifo and the Nigeria Immigration Service to establish how much time the TUC leader had spent in Nigeria over the past few months.
He further questioned the whereabouts of the 90 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses reportedly donated to the TUC by the Federal Government.
However, Osifo responded strongly to Ajaero’s allegations, describing the NLC president as a disaster to Nigeria’s trade union movement.
The TUC president said the labour movement deserved better leadership, adding that listening to Ajaero’s comments was disappointing given the history of respected leaders who had previously led organised labour in the country.
Osifo also insisted that the NLC had no authority to negotiate on behalf of TUC members, stressing that both organisations were independent labour centres with separate leadership structures, affiliated unions and mandates.
Addressing the allegation that he resides outside Nigeria, Osifo described the accusation as embarrassing.
He explained that before leaving office as President of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) in August, he had actively visited workplaces and negotiated salary increases and other benefits for members.
The TUC president also disclosed that he was currently in the United Kingdom attending a training programme focused on advanced leadership and management.
Osifo accused Ajaero of failing to secure better outcomes for Nigerian workers through negotiations, arguing that the NLC president lacked sufficient experience in leading a trade union.
He further suggested that Ajaero needed additional leadership and negotiation training.
“Ajaero has never led any union in Nigeria, that is why he does not understand the principles of negotiation,” Osifo said, recommending training and retraining for his NLC counterpart.
The public exchange has further exposed the longstanding disagreements between the NLC and TUC, two major organisations representing workers’ interests in Nigeria.
Although both labour centres have occasionally worked together on issues affecting Nigerian workers, their differences over negotiations, government agreements and labour policies have continued to affect their ability to maintain a united position on important national issues.
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