The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has been blamed for the recent crisis of two actions of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Abuja.

The transport union said the NLC’s interference in its internal matter went overboard, while alleging that the labour union tried to impose the former NURTW president Tajudeen Baruwa on them.

Recall that on 13 September, two factions of the transport union clashed in a violent encounter that claimed the life of one person and injured sereval others at its National Headquarters in Abuja. The incident had led to the arrest of Baruwa and 21 others.

Reacting to the incident, the acting General Secretary of the NURTW, Kayode Agbeyangi, after the union’s National Executive Council (NEC) on Tuesday, said the NLC’s interference was for selfish reasons.

Agbeyangi submitted that “The recent outbreak of violence at the National Secretariat of the Union is due to the biased interference of the NLC for selfish reasons. Like the proverbial sympathizer who cried more than the bereaved, NLC has gone overboard in expressing their interest in our internal affairs, and took a one-sided decision that further threatened our effort to unite all interests and move the Union forward, It is very sad and unfortunate that the umbrella body of workers that is expected to protect the welfare and right of all workers has turned itself into a tool used for an outbreak of violence, favouritism and flagrant abuse of constitutional provisions of the union by attempting to impose the erstwhile President Tajudeen Baruwa on the union whose tenure expired on 28th August 2023.

“We call on the Joe Ajaero-led NLC to discard their bias and ethnic sentiments towards the former General Secretary who is their kinsman, and refrain from further blackmailing the union in their desperate bid to authenticate illegality.

“We expect them to respect our determination to ensure the emergence of a democratically elected National leadership for NURTW at the forthcoming Quadrennial Delegates Conference.”

However, in a swift reaction to the allegation, the NLC dismissed the claims, describing it as fallacious and laced with malice.

The NLC spokesperson, Benson Upah said “The allegations are fallacious and laced with malice. It is completely unfounded. We do not run our affiliate unions but whenever they come to us to help resolve some issues, with facts and figures we intervene dispassionately. Whoever made that statement is very unfair to the leadership of the NLC.