The Labour Party's National Publicity Secretary, Abayomi Arabambi, has denounced the incursion of the party’s headquarters by the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress, led by Joe Ajaero, on Wednesday.
Arabambi stated that Ajaero should be arrested for treason for plotting a political rebellion against the Federal Government.
He alleged that Ajaero intended to incite a breach of peace by urging members to invade the Labour Party offices in the 36 states, which could result in a breakdown of law and order.
He remarked that this could lead to a state of lawlessness.
Arabambi revealed this during a press conference in Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun State, on Wednesday.
He conveyed that the NLC's call for the picketing, invasion, and destruction of the Labour Party's national headquarters is illegal, outdated, and not in line with modern democracy.
He stated, “We are now fully ready to defend our party leadership, and any unconventional or illegal attempts to seize our party leadership, contrary to the rule of law, will be met with resistance, and this is not a threat.
“We will protect our party leadership from being taken over by NLC political agitators. We are prepared to remove the NLC troublemakers from the party's national headquarters as no one has a monopoly on violence.
“If anyone unlawfully declares themselves as chairman, secretary, or anything else, we urge all workers across the country to apprehend them and bring them to us.”
He mentioned that when a case is pending before a court, especially the Supreme Court in this instance, all parties are expected to maintain the status quo as determined by the Court of Appeal.
“We believe that if there are any grievances, the NLC should have resorted to the courts and allowed due process to run its course, rather than pressuring political parties to conform to their demands as if they were dealing with a business organization.
“NLC is a movement that should, by all means, remain non-political. There are numerous issues affecting Nigerian workers today, which the NLC has failed to effectively advocate for.
“The current NLC leadership is a failure who prioritized minor issues over more pressing matters,” he added.
Arabambi noted that while the party acknowledges the court ruling stating that the NLC was among the founders of the party, it did not explicitly grant ownership of the party to the NLC.
He stated that contrary to the NLC's assertion, the judgment by Justice Gabriel Kolawole on March 20, 2018 did not confer ownership of the party to the NLC, but provided the right to all Nigerians, including workers, women, and all segments of society, to be co-owners of the party.
“So the NLC should focus on labor issues and allow politicians to manage political affairs. If they wish to engage in politics, let those with a sense of camaraderie take charge of the NLC so that the political members among the NLC executives can make way for those who genuinely advocate for the interests of the masses.
“Labour Party fully supports the call from Nigerians for the non-partisan nature of the Labour movement and urges that the leadership of the NLC should be non-partisan,” he concluded.
