Privatisation, Punitive To Trade Unions – TUC

The Trade Union Congress
of Nigeria (TUC), Rivers State Chapter, has said  privatisation of state-owned enterprises is used by politicians as a punitive action against trade unions in the country.
The state chairman of the union, Comrade Chika Onuegbu, stated this in a paper presented to the Labour Writers Association of Nigeria’s Capacity Building workshop held in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, recently with the topic “Change, Emerging Structures, Privatisation and the Challenge of Leadership, in the New Labour Movement”.
Onuegbu said privatisation has had adverse effects on workers and their trade unions.        He said it was very important that the labour movement restructures and transforms itself to be better prepared for changes in the environment of labour relations such as privatisation, stressing that such transformation can only be driven successfully by the leadership of trade unions.
The labour leader said trade union movement in the country is now largely dominated by men and women who no longer have the passion for the defence of workers’ rights and privileges.
He said “There seems to be a prevalence of a cadre of leadership that has moved away from the same kind of commitment to workers shown by the movement’s leadership of  yester years”.
Onuegbu called for a change of character of trade union leadership in Nigeria in order to help the labour movement understand the countervailing forces.
He lamented that selfish and ego-driven leadership today characterised the labour movement, stressing that these brands of union leaders are more driven by interests that have precipitated crises in the nation’s labour movement.
He said within the labour movement prevalence of primordial sentiments has taken root where the leadership has largely resorted to cleavages which dictate most policies, programmes and governance actions.
Onuegbu declares “Promotions  and advancement within the movement are mostly dictated by cronyism, clannishness and this sacrifices merit and leaves the movement often operating at sub optimal levels”.
He condemned the high level of corruption among trade union leaders, adding that the level of sleaze that characterised the movement is mind-bogging and largely unethical.
The TUC boss said majority of check-off dues within the movement end in the pocket of the leadership either through sleight of hand or through some administrative shenanigans, adding that developments have eluded many unions both by physical and social infrastructure including better human capacity.
He said corruption is worrying and this is one of the reasons the movement has found it challenging to effectively engage state actors in the area of corruption.
Onuegbu said unfortunately the fight against corruption and the enthronement of good governance is the main reform that is needed in Nigeria, stressing that it is the ultimate prescription for the economic and political progress of Nigeria.
He said until the Nigerian labour movement together with her civil society partners embarks on a sustained and effective industrial action against corruption, impunity and bad governance, the country will continue in the downward spiral, stressing that this greatly underscores the urgent need for a revival of the Nigerian labour movement.
He called for cohesion within the labour movement as according to him, there presently exists a disconnect between the leadership in labour movement and the membership.

Philip Okparaji