The outgoing National President of the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Ambali Akeem Olatunji, has lampooned Abia state governor, Alex Otti, for his alleged unwholesome meddling in the union’s affairs.
Dissatisfied over what he called Otti’s imposition of his stooges as executives of the union in Abia State, the NULGE President dismissed the insinuation of a leadership tussle, stating that the state union had no leadership crisis before Otti was elected.
According to the Tribune, the outgoing NULGE National President, who spoke during the inauguration of his successor, Comrade Fredrick Akinrinlola, in Akure, Ondo State’s capital, described Otti’s action as “executive recklessness,” accusing the Abia governor of imposing his cronies on the union to take over the leadership of NULGE in Abia.
Mr. Olatunji also alleged that the governor decided to impose his stooges at the NULGE helms of affairs to control the union, but said the union would resist the move.
He said some chief executives at the state level always want to impose very weak candidates that would be controllable by them and that would not represent the interests of the union and would not be able to engage the government.
“We have one recently in Abia; we conducted elections before the new government came in; the new government came in and was trying to destabilize the union; this is a contradiction to the labor movement; the administration has come out to be a disappointment to the labor.
“NULGE is cautioning the governor of Abia, Alex Otti, for his undue meddling in the affairs of NULGE and attempt to hijack the leadership of the union, and we reject this, saying that he has no right to annul our election and impose his brothers and cronies to take over the leadership of the union.
“We were disappointed that after the conduct of our election before the inauguration of the present administration in Abia State by Governor Otti of the Labour Party, he (Otti) assumed office, and the first thing he did was go after the industrial union and make an attempt to seize the leadership of the NURTW, which was rebuffed by the NLC,” the statement partly reads.
