Business activities at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) headquarters may be disrupted beginning from Wednesday as affiliate unions of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the Commission plan for a showdown.
The two unions in the Commission are the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government Owned Companies (SSASCGOC), an affiliate of TUC and the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE), an affiliate of NLC.
The NLC said it would lead all its affiliate unions to join AUPCTRE to picket CAC headquarters for 3 days, starting from Wednesday, over alleged “anti-union” stance of the management; SSASCGOC maintained that such action is a call to anarchy and it would not fold its arms while the NLC progresses against the rule of law.
SSASCGOC said the NLC in its efforts to reverse the position of the law which has been interpreted by the National Industrial Court has once again deplored the instrumentality of academic exercise and threats, in fruitless attempt to set aside the judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction through the back door.
Crisis started when AUPCTRE, which represents the junior workers through its Branch Chairman, Comrade Ibrahim Makirfi, accused the Registrar-General of the commission, Alhaji Garba Abubakar, of denying his staff promotion.
But SSASCGOC in a letter addressed to the minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, said AUPCTRE has no locus stand under the law as pronounced by the NIC judgment, to speak for any senior staff be it in CAC or any Statutory Corporation until the judgment of NIC is reversed through the court of appeal or supreme court.
The letter which was signed by SSASCGOC General Secretary, Ayo Olorunfemi said NLC and AUPCTRE can only speak on behalf of junior staff of CAC which they represent according to the Trade Union Act and NIC judgments.
He urged the Minister to call a meeting of the NLC/AUPCTRE, TUC/SSASGOC, Registrar General CAC, EFCC, DSS ICPC and Federal Ministry of Labour a view to unmask the problem.
He explained that SSASCGOC that controls all the senior staff of the Nigeria port Authority and many other Statutory Corporations in Nigeria has never issued threat of strike or picketing because “we advance our courses through scientific and civilised approaches to social dialogue.”
He said the letter by the NLC is an open invitation to anarchy which must be checked.