LABOUR MATTERS: My fears for incoming administration – Ajaero, NLC President

The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress , Comrade Joe Ajaero has said the spillover of looming labour matters from the outgoing administration may outweigh the incoming administration if not properly implemented. 

Ajaero, while fielding questions on Channels Television's 'Politics Today', insisted that lack of implementation on agreed terms with Labour leaders on the part of the government is the challenge Nigeria is facing. 

Analysing President Muhamadu Buhari's performance on Labour matters in the past eight years, the NLC President said the way forward is for the incoming administration to respect the sanctity of such agreements. 

"The Buhari administration tried their best to ensure that there is industrial peace and harmony to the best of their capacity and capability, but that capability wasn't enough as most of the industrial disputes they treated were not finished. 

The doctors' strike and the agreement reached are waiting for the incoming government. 

"The ASUU issue is pending, waiting for the incoming government, there's hardly any agreement that was conclusively decided, and that's why I pity the incoming administration because a lot of industrial crises seem to be looming. The ASUU strike is there. Under the Buhari administration, the federal government apprehended almost 80 per cent of industrial crises but didn't resolve them. So when you apprehend an industrial action and fail to resolve it, what happens? Asked if there are dangers waiting for the incoming administration on the Labour force, he said: "When you apprehend and fail to resolve issues, there will be spillover. The matters resolved are not up to 30 per cent and I pity the incoming government. 

"The best way to go is for the incoming government to sit down and study the situation. If they understood the situation, they would settle it one way or another. It will do them a lot of good if they bring in proper technocrats to handle that sector. Trade unions and their leaders are not unreasonable. 

But the major problem may be the problem of implementation, where what was agreed 10 years ago, 8 years ago was not implemented, for instance; check the ASUU issue, check the power sector, check the residents doctors, and other sectors of the economy; it's just implementation. 

"So it is not usually too difficult to reach an agreement and strike a balance. But respecting the sanctity of such an agreement from the government side is always a problem, and it doesn't speak well of any government that doesn't obey agreements. An agreement that is not forced on any government is expected to be honored by such a government".