Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State has again spoken on his rift with Joe Ajaero, the national president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
Background
There was an uproar in the state on 1 November when some thugs and police officers reportedly attacked Mr Ajaero and other members of the NLC who had assembled at the union’s council secretariat ahead of a planned protest against the state government.
The workers said the protest was imperative because the Imo State Government reneged on its agreements with them, most notably the accord agreement on 9 January 2021 among others.
The national leadership of the NLC later alleged that Mr Ajaero was arrested by police operatives in the state.
The union also accused the Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, of mobilising the thugs and the officers to attack the NLC president to frustrate the planned protest in the state.
But the police denied arresting Mr Ajaero, saying they only placed him in protective custody to shield him from attack by the thugs.
In his first comment, Governor Uzodinma blamed Mr Ajaero for his alleged partisanship in the state.
“What has happened in this ugly coincidence is that the national president of the Nigeria Labour Congress is from Imo state and has not been able to demarcate the difference between being a national leader of an organisation and then an interested party in local politics,” Mr Uzodinma said at the presidential villa earlier this month in Abuja.
The NLC, on Tuesday, embarked on an indefinite strike to protest the assault on its president. Other affiliate groups have joined the industrial action to show solidarity with the NLC.
‘My grouse with the NLC president’
While addressing Imo State Council of Elders who visited him at the Government House, Owerri on Tuesday to congratulate him for his re-election, Mr Uzodinma described the rift with the NLC president as a “politically-sponsored antagonism.”
The governor said his government regrets “any assault” meted out to the NLC president in the state.
“But, at the same time, I condemn in its entirety, the attempt by the president of Nigeria Labour Congress to take the leadership of Imo State for granted,” Mr Uzodinma said without giving details.
The governor said Mr Ajaero, who hails from the state, should use his position as the NLC president to benefit the state and not otherwise.
He said as the governor of Mr Ajaero’s home state, he deserved to be officially informed by Mr Ajaero that he had been elected president of the NLC.
“Not even one visit, not even one phone call to the governor of the state. Rather, he came in here (Imo) holding nocturnal meetings with (my) political opponents. That’s not acceptable and government must not be cowed by any non-state actor.
“I will not submit to that. I can never be intimidated,” he declared.
The governor said, contrary to claims, his administration has been paying salaries of 98 per cent of workers in the state promptly, adding that he paid about 24 months’ salary arrears of judges on assumption of office.
“Imo State Government is not owing any worker. The two per cent of workers that were not being paid had discrepancies. Some of them before this time were transferred from one department to another department.
“And they were receiving salaries from where they left and where they went to. Some of them were not existing, (and) never existed. And those ones were offloaded because we applied bio metrics,” Mr Uzodinma said.
“And we gave up to nine months to every civil servant who is not receiving his or her salary to come forward. Those who came forward and made some strong genuine cases, were admitted into our payroll,” the governor added.
PREMIUN TIMES
