Comrade Hassan Sunmonu is the founding president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC). He speaks with MOSES JOHN on NLC from the beginning as well as the current division with the organisation, amongst others.
40 during military era
Myself and the pioneer general secretary of the Congress, Aliyu Dangiwa, we did our best in the first six years, which was a three-year tenure. That time, you know we operated under both military and civilian regimes. So, it was not like now where it is civilian regime throughout. At that time, you could be locked up just at the whims and caprices of any military leader who think you are a threat. You can be locked up for months or even years, but today it is not like that. So, those were the kind of circumstances under which we operated.
Restructured trade union
Also then, we had a restructured trade union movement where we had unions up to 5000 house unions. But now, it is called industrial unions and they are 42 of them that constitute the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC). At that time, we had no faction, because we had four labour centres that merged. They formally called special conferences to dissolve themselves, surrender their certificates, before the current Nigeria Labour Congress could be founded on the 28th of February, 1978.
Change of CLO to NLC
Don’t also forget the fact that the name government wanted the centre to be called was Central Labour Organisation (CLO). That was why it was the only item on the constitution that was drafted at the NLC inaugural conference in Ibadan on the 28th February, 1978. That was the only thing we can amend because it was a one-day conference. If we had wanted to amend the constitution, NLC wouldn’t have been formed that day. So, the only thing that changed was the name of the organisation. This was because in 1950, the movement agreed that the name be called Nigeria Labour Congress and so that name was maintained instead of CLO as proposed by government.
From there we started a building that was hired for us by Federal Government in Ikorodu road, No 42, Constitution Avenue as our National Secretariat that time. Then our team also discovered one of the assets that we inherited from one of the merging centres at that time, Nigeria Tailor Congress (NTC) had a building at 29 Olajuwon street, Yaba, Lagos which had not been completed then. So, we got hold of the building. In fact, it was taken over by government, but we fought and we got the Federal Government to reconstruct the building and we made it our national secretariat.
Then we were given one million naira subvention and what NLC did at our first NEC meeting was to decide on how to share the money. The NEC later decided that each of the 42 industrial unions should be given N10,000. Don’t also forget that one naira that time was more than one dollar, which mad the total of N420,000, and the balance of N580,000 from the one million naira was given to NLC. We then started to launch State Councils of NLC, we used to have 19 states then.
So, we went round and launched the state councils of NLC which was very appropriate then, because the industrial unions as at then was not able to establish offices in the 19 states. So, it was the Nigeria Labour Congress that was helping the industrial unions’ take-off as well as servicing their members in all the 19 states.
Labour participation in NIPSS
I remember I was invited to give a lecture at NIPSS Kuru Jos, in March 8, 1980. After subjecting me to about one and a half hours of question and answers, I then asked them that who is a trade unionist in this class? but none of them raised his or her hand up.
I told them this institute was standing on two legs, and as long as it is standing on two legs, it cannot be stable, so you need the third leg so that it would be a tripod. After that from 1981, National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) asked NLC to nominate candidates for participation.
That is why since that time, NLC and its affiliates have been participating in NPSS and since then we have gotten over 30 or 40 mni in our ranks.
Celebration of May Day minimum wage
Then, also we fought for May Day, because it was not a public holiday before. It was during our time that we agitated and it was granted in honour of workers sacrifices in nation- building. Also, there was no minimum wage by law then in the history of Nigeria until May 1981 when we had to go on strike, and we finally got minimum wage.
At the continental level, we were very active, both regional which is OTUWA founded in 1984, and also we have been contributing to national discourse. You know we were not like politicians who want to sit tight or like the president who wants to do third term. In fact, we were considered as people who did well and even proposed to amend the constitution so that we can run another term but we said no.
From there Ali Ciroma succeeded me. We were opposed to International Monetary Fund (IMF), Structural Adjustment Programme, it started during our time and Ciroma who succeeded me continued the fight that Babangida(Gen. Ibrahim, former military president) tried to destabilise the NLC as a result of our opposition to these policies. We fought it to stand still. Babangida was even trying to subject it to national debate, but this was rejected by the Nigerian people.
Kalu Odika Kalu was the finance minister at that time, and championed the campaign on behalf of federal government, while the NLC was campaigning against on behalf of the people. We did our best, but it is good that after 40 years, we are still alive, even though we have lost a number of people.
NLC before and now
The situation in 1978 is not the same thing as the situation today. I was telling you that the subvention we were given then was one million naira, which was like one million dollars. Look at the purchasing power then and now, there are differences. One thing most Nigerians don’t understand was that the members and leadership of NLC did not come from the Mars but part of Nigerian society and the people.
Let us even talk about politicians, our founding fathers, can you compare them to the present politicians. I remember the former Vice Chancellor of University of Ife, Dr. Abimbola who was Senator at that time, he said then it was only allowances that were given to them and not salaries. But what do we have today? And that is the Nigeria society. So, when you are making comparison, you also have to put the indices of what was happening then and now. Today, are our children respecting their elders, teachers and even their parents? They think they’ve known everything, they are referring to the older people as analogue, while they are digital and the digital people are stealing the country dry.
Returning NLC to path of peace
Let me say that, remind me of one our proverbs that says a hunting dog that is destined to be lost, will never hear the whistle of the hunter. All of us as veterans, we were there at the International Conference Centre, venue of the last delegates conference, we didn’t sleep for 36 hours, and when the whole thing ended in crisis, we were the one that asked for a National Administrative Council (NAC) meeting of the outgoing executives to summon an emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting at our instance, and we were there. That led to the peace initiative that we initiated. I was the Chairman of that initiative, Comrade Adams and other veterans were members and we worked for 15 months.
At the end we reached an understanding that since Ajaero claimed it was during sorting out of the votes cast that he was rigged out and that he had a video evidence, let him bring the video. For the 15 months we met, he didn’t come out with the evidence. So, his claim was a lie and we cannot support lies.
And immediately, the Wabba team kicked off. They (Ajero) went and inaugurated their own NLC in mainland hotel without any conference. They just put their names and said they have elected them at their various meetings and we know that NLC is the only one. After that, they resorted to saying they are United Labour Congress of Nigeria (ULC), and I say they can’t answer United Labour Congress (ULC) because ULC was one of the four labour centres that surrendered their certificate after dissolving themselves, that gave birth to NLC. So, they can’t bear that name. Even God himself dislikes individual to be arrogant.
I know in the Holy Quran as a Muslim, the way you even walk cannot be as if you are the owner of the earth. May be because your union is rich, and so what? If he was patient, he could have led the NLC for eight years. Look at Comrade Adeyemi, he was shut out in one of the conferences, we also made conciliation between his union and the NLC and today he came back and he is one of the deputy presidents. Why is Ajaero in a hurry?
