House Defers Debate on Labour Bill
Police halt NLC rally
From Ahamefula Ogbu in Abuja, Chris Nwachuku, Ben Nwabuwe and Francis Onwudo in Lagos
The Labour Reform Bill yesterday suffered an initial setback after members of the House of Represen-tatives refused to commence debate on the bill. The lawmakers said they are yet to receive details of the variation between the old law and the proposed amendments.
Police in Lagos, however, took over the secretariat of Nigeria Civil Service Union yesterday, scaring away scores of workers who had trooped out in the early hours to join in the protest called by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) against the bill.
After calling up the bill, Speaker Aminu Bello Masari asked the House Leader, Hon Abdul Ningi to commence debate.
Ningi observed that the bill had generated a lot of interest among Nigerians, but decried the portrayal of the National Assembly as subservient and willing to do the biddings of the Executive over the bill.
He said the legislators were going to look at the bill without prejudices and decide on what would be in the interest of Nigerians.
Ningi said in deliberating on the bill, all undemocratic clauses would be expunged. He urged members to look at the proposed law from the standpoint of what obtained in other advanced democracies. He added that after passing second reading when it would be committed to relevant committees, a public hearing would be organised to enable Nigerians make inputs before a final decision would be reached on the matter.
Ningi rhetorically asked, "Do we have labour unions as powerful in other countries as the labour in Nigeria. Don't we need to democratize labour in Nigeria?
"We need to have reforms that are not vindictive, we need to have reforms that are not targeted at anybody. We do not need a situation whereby when there is a strike the nation is at a standstill. There is need for a balancing act so that not when things are wrong in the oil sector, it will affect the universities. Anywhere we find undemocratic clauses in the bill we should expunge it and the House will go ahead to consider the entire bill", Ningi said.
He submitted that the bill is in tune with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) standards. He noted that the bill is not and should not be seen as that between "Oshiomhole and Obasanjo, it is about Nigerians".
No sooner had he ended his submission than Hon. Wunmi Bewaji pointed out that there was no compendium attached to the bill, especially of the old law seeking to be amended. He added that members have not been given the bill to study so as to enable them make meaningful contribution.
He disclosed that section 60 of the 1999 Constitution which gives the lawmakers power to adopt procedure has not been followed.
Masari replied that there was no need for such compendium and asked other contributors to make inputs. Bewaji interjected clarifying that he was not properly understood. He said what he meant was that the necessary documents needed for proper debate were not supplied to members.
At this point, the shout of "No, No" rented the air prompting the Chairman of Business and Rules committee, Hon Ita Enang, to intervene. He said the bill "came just yesterday" and that the principal bill would be supplied.
Apparently sensing that he had been pushed into a tight corner, Ningi took the floor and explained that he just flew into the country from London yesterday morning and thought that members had the necessary documents to enable them debate the bill. He added that since the necessary conditions for its debate had not been met, there was no option but to stand it down.
Masari then asked Enang how long it would take to make the principal Act available to members. Enang said Wednesday (today) would be okay so that the debate could go on (Thursday) tomorrow.
This caused another uproar.
At this juncture, Deputy Speaker Austin Opara stepped in to save the day as he submitted that the House wants to always maintain transparency as well as quality debate. "There is need for members to have the principal bill so that they can give quality contributions to the debate. I therefore pray that the Bill be stood down till Tuesday next week," he said.
This was put to question and carried by majority voice vote before the Speaker adjourned the matter till next week. The House immediately adjourned for the day.
Speaking to newsmen immediately after the bill was stood down NLC President Adams Oshiomhole lauded the manner in which the leadership gave opportunity of free expression to members, thereby allowing them to decide what should be done.
The NLC President said the bill was not about Oshiomhole but the future of Nigerians as he may cease to be in the NLC tomorrow. He said those who talk about strike were missing the point. It's the bad policies of government that lead to strikes, as well as refusal of government to listen to other arms of government when touchy issues concerning citizens' welfare were involved, he said.
Earlier in the day, House of members from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had been briefed by a lobby group led by their party's leaders.
The acting chairman of Board of Trustees, Chief Anthony Anenih and the National Chairman, Chief Auduh Ogbeh, were in the House to ensure that the Trade Union ( Amendment) Act is passed expeditiously.
Anenih and Ogbeh met with their party members in the House for an hour between 11 am to midday. While Ogbeh stayed with the members throughout the full duration, Anenih who joined the meeting at inception left 30 minutes later.
THISDAY gathered that the members pointedly told the party chieftains that it was only when they needed their co-operation that they visit the House but that they have never called to fraternize with them or care about their welfare afterwards. The lawmakers also complained to Anenih and Ogbeh that they are being owed their constituency allowances.
The members, THISDAY further gathered, finally assured the party chieftains they are going to consider the Bill on its merit and dispassionately too before asking them to leave.
But in Lagos Armed police personnels stormed the secretariat of Nigeria Civil Service Union, locked the entrance gate of the secretariat, and forced the workers to go back to their homes and offices.
The assurance of NLC leaders, organisers of the rally, that it would be peaceful, failed to sway the police to let the workers stage the protest.
The police led by Tunde Sobulo finally opened the gate to the secretariat about 11.30 a.m. after series of negotiations between the state NLC chairman, Comrade Michael Olukoya and the police command. However, the protesting workers were restricted to the civil service union secretariat.
Speaking at the rally, Olukoya said the intention of the bill is to kill labour said that such a move should be resisted.
"Today, you are aware of the coup between the President and the rest of Nigerians, his objective is to kill labour if we fail to offer resistance. But nobody can kill labour, not even the President of the Federal Republic, he will fail," he said.
In a letter to the Lagos State House of Assembly, the state Council Secretary, Comrade Ismail Bello, said the bill is not only against workers interest but violated the conventions of the ILO.
"The bill is not only against the constitutionally guaranteed rights of Nigerian workers to form and belong to trade union of their choice it totally violates the principles and conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO)."
Also, Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN) yesterday warned the Federal Government of the consequences of passing the bill, which he said, is a threat to the democratic project, and an attempt to further impoverish the mass of Nigeria through fresh price hike of petroluem products.
Fawehnmi, who was the guest of honour at the launching of the book, "Nigeria: Freedom of Association and the Trade Union Act a critical analysis written by Mr. Femi Aborishade and Ade A Ola-Joseph," said Obasanjo had ealier vowed to wipe out the Nigerian Labour Congress as he did to Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU)
He explained that the passage of the bill will imply that there will be no more strike, nor opposition to government undemocratic acts.
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