The Acting Chairman, Nigeria Labor Congress, Edo State Council, Comrade Bernard Egwakhide has debunked allegations making rounds that there is crisis in the labour movement in the state.
Comrade Egwakhide stated this in a chat with Radio Nigeria in Benin City, the Edo State Capital.
The Acting Edo NLC Chairman stressed that the NLC which he chairs remains the authentic and only recognised Nigeria Labour Congress in the State.
” I don’t think there’s any crisis in Edo NLC because NLC remains one, haven been the chairman since November 2024 when Comrade Odion Olaye was unanimously removed by majority of the affiliate unions through a vote of no confidence, so NLC still remains one, and I am the Chairman of NLC in Edo state”.
On the committee allegedly inaugurated by some person’s purportedly from the national body, he explained that there were no issues however If there was going to be an inauguration.
” a day before that day, we witnessed when the State House of Assembly made a pronouncement and a motion was raised keeping the said inauguration in abeyance.
the next day the same persons say they wanted to come for inauguration, we were all at the NLC state Secretariat, they were not there. So I don’t know were this crisis or issues are coming from “.
On relationship with the National Body of NLC, the Edo State Acting NLC Chairman Comrade Egwakhide said it is very cordial .
” Edo workers are peace loving persons and are very comfortable with what we are doing and they believe in us as their leaders and I don’t think that any other person can come and say he is a leader of workers in Edo State because first we are Edo workers, the so called caretaker committee chairman is not known by any of us. I have never seen him as a labour leader in this state.
I was a Vice Chairman to Comrade Emma Ademokun, then in AUPCTRE many years ago before he went on to become the state Acting NLC chairman, i have never seen that person as a labour person.”
He alleged that the committee was null and void, against every labour law anywhere in the world and there fore a faulted move ab initio.
” Please ask the so called committee chairman were is his office? ,where are you working?, if he shows were he his working, ok, where is his Secretariat?
I will tell you my AUPCTER secretariat is here by Ogbelaka and my NLC secretariat is by Temboga junction, so please ask the purported committee chairman were is his office? So I think we don’t have issues in Edo. We are very straight forward persons and we are dealing with the authorities in our bid to take Edo state workers to greater heights where good working conditions, better pay and a generally good labour relations are the results.”
