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NLC President Joe Ajaero, speaking on Monday, made it clear that state governors lack the constitutional authority to dissolve or prohibit labor unions. He pointed out that unionism is safeguarded by the exclusive legislative list, reinforcing that only the federal government has the legal power to regulate labor affairs in Nigeria.
The NLC President did not hold back in his criticism of state governors who, he said, have made Abuja their permanent base while their states suffer from neglect. Addressing workers at a town hall meeting in Lokoja, Ajaero denounced the decision of former Kogi Governor Yahaya Bello to dissolve labor unions in state-owned tertiary institutions, labeling it an abuse of power that undermines labor rights.
He said, “Let me say here, union practice falls under the exclusive legislative list in the Constitution. No governor has the power to ban them, you don’t ban what you don’t have control over.
“Unions are registered nationally by the Registrar of Trade Unions. For administrative convenience, they may choose to have branches in states, so what are you now banning?”
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Ajaero, taken aback by the existence of such a policy in Kogi, asserted that the state government had no legal grounds to ban labor unions, as labor affairs are exclusively within the jurisdiction of the federal government. He also criticized the increasing number of governors who have distanced themselves from their states, choosing the comfort of Abuja while their citizens struggle with worsening economic conditions.
Highlighting the purpose of their visit, Ajaero announced that the NLC leadership was in Kogi to commission 10 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses to support the state chapter in tackling transportation difficulties. However, he expressed disappointment that, just like in the five other zones they had visited, the governors were nowhere to be found—seemingly prioritizing their stay in Abuja over the needs of their people.
Ajaero stressed that workers were already bearing the brunt of economic hardship, and any plan to increase telecom tariffs would only worsen their suffering. He assured them that their grievances would be taken directly to the governor but lamented the pattern of disengagement, pointing out that, out of five zones visited, only one governor had been present to address workers’ concerns.
Ajaero said, “However, there is a problem we are having in trends because most governors are now living permanently in Abuja. We have moved to about five zones, Kogi is about the fifth zone. We have met governors in only one state. Each time you go there, they are in Abuja and this is affecting governance.
“I think we should be able to manage the centre and the units, so people will have the feeling of democracy, the dividend of democracy so that people can talk to their leaders.
“So, if we capture all these things, the information you are going to give us will be conditional if the governor is around. If he’s around, we will convey your information to him. If he’s not around, whosoever he’s going to send, we pass it to him.”
