Lagos — Senate President replies Oshiomhole

Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday demanded for immediate suspension of the embattled Senate President, Adolphus Wabara to enable proper investigation into allegations of corruption levelled against him by majority of the senators. It also advised the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to resist the temptation of treating the issue as a party affair.

However President Olusegun Obasanjo assured labour that neither the Presidency nor the PDP would interfer in the corruption scandal rocking the upper legislative House insisting that it is purely the Senate's affair.

But the embattled Wabara described Oshiomhole's position as unfortunate, adding that the labour leader was ignorant of the present development in the Senate.

Addressing the May Day rally NLC President Adams Oshiomhole said any attempt to treat the matter as party affair would make mockery of the self trumpted government anti-corruption crusade.

"The alleged crime committed by Senate President is not against PDP, it is a crime against Nigerian nation, Nigeria people and the Nigeria constitution. The proper way is to subject the Senate President like the other citizens to the normal criminal justice system. He must be made to answer question from the Nigerian police, the ICPC is also free to question him? said Oshiomhole.

The NLC President said the PDP had no moral responsibility to strip the senators the power to investigate the matter, noting that the Presidency was aware of the existence of the party before the ICPC law was promulgated.

"Our position on this matter is simple, given the gravity of this crime and even the controversy surrounding his rise to the senate, and the court case, many had argued that this was a man who had already become a Senate President before becoming a senator. This man should be made to face the music alone and why he is doing that, he should be made to step down. We cannot shut down the activities of the National Assembly merely because the Senate President has problem. In the world of work when a worker is involved in embezzlement, he is usually suspended, while enquiries go on. This suspension should be extended to Senator Wabara. Any attempt to keep him in office will formally nail any pretension to fight against corruption," NLC President said.

The NLC boss contended that the embattled Senate President lacked the moral authority to construe his story in office and preside over law making. The body noted that any law made while the allegations were on woul be tainted with corruption. "Any law made under him as long as these allegations are there would have the adorn of corruption and the system need to be saved from that embarrassment."

Reflecting on the manner the scandal was being handled congress president said that it did not conform with Obasanjo's commitment to wiping out corruption in the society.

While urging President Obasanjo to distance himself from subjecting the issue to party affairs, NLC said the matter is a taste case for ICPC. It urged the commission to demonstrate its proactive capacity and seriousness in accordance with its mandae and public expectations.

"If the criminal justice is set aside, the fight against corruption would suffer irreparable setback while the corruption perception crisis of the nation will worsen, especially before the international community. The Senate President has mistaken his private pocket for public pocket and we encourage those senators seeking for justice to fight on," Oshiomhole noted.

On the last local government election, Oshiomhole said the current democratic project suffered a major set back because of the level of rigging.

NLC rated the massive fraud as equivalent of a military coup which imposes amelectable and imelected politicians at the helm of affairs. The election noted the NLC president was a clear indication that the democratic project "is now being mindlessly endangered by its custodians.

"Having invested so much in bringing about the democratic dispensation, we have real fears that the system will not survive a repeat of the previous massive rigging and imposition." NLC consequently appealed to Obasanjo to summon the will and initiative fundamental electoral reform to avoid the disaster that awaits the nation in 2007.

On its part the Labour Party (LP) associated itself with NLC position contending that the issue of corruption against the Senate President lacked ethnic or religious colour and demanded for immediate suspension of Wabara. The party national chairman Dan Nwanyanwu warned politicians to desist associating Wabara travail with the fate of the Igbo in the search for a political office.

He stated that the money which he allegedly enriched himself with was not used to develop the reign "what is at stake is one man who has decided to enrich himself corruptly without regards to the feeling of his people and the constitution. Let him face the music. But the starting point to ensure fairness is to suspend him."

But in a press statement entitled: "Oshiomhole Did Not Get the Facts Rights" by Wabara's Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Henry Ugbolue, the President of the Senate insisted that Oshiomhole, would not have called for his probe or resignation if he had been properly briefed about the impasse in the Senate. "Like President Olusegun Obasanjo rightly pointed out at the May Day rally, a huge dose of misinformation and half truth was fed the public about the President of the Senate while he was away in Mexico leading the Nigerian delegation to the Inter-parliamentary Union Meeting.

"Indeed, since returning to the country, Chief Wabara has taken time to carefully state his own side of the story. "Among other things, he has told fellow Senators and mediating chieftains of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), that he does not award contracts and thus could not have awarded the contracts he was accused of awarding. "He has also explained that the allocation or disbursement of money to Distinguished Senators to run their offices was done by the Director of Finance and Supply in accordance with an existing budget.

"Chief Wabara had equally accepted that the method or the formula adopted in this allocation may not have met the expectations of a number of the distinguished senators. But he had said in his defence that a better allocation formula will be worked out now that the 2004 budget has been signed into law by President Olusegun Obasanjo.

"He has also been explaining to fellow Senators and leaders of the PDP that he authorised the Clerk of the National Assembly to go ahead with his decision to award a number of contracts last December when the bureaucrats in the National Assembly drew his attention to the fact that money was usually lacking for the smooth functioning of the Assembly in the first two months of a new year. "The bureaucrats had advised that necessary working tools be stock-piled for distinguished senators in December to serve them in the early months of the new year (2004), pending fresh allocation of funds from the executive branch of government.

"Based on these explanations, overwhelming majority of distinguished senators have since accepted that the President of the Senate, Chief Adolphus Wabara has not fundamentally erred as earlier bandied in a section of the media. "Equally, the leadership of the PDP has done its investigation and has arrived at the same conclusion and has insisted that senators rescind their initial bid to oust Chief Wabara as the President of the Senate.

"Clearly, the views expressed by the highly respected Comrade Adams Oshiomhole during Saturday's May Day rally were influenced or inspired by the initial misinformation and half truth that made the rounds while Chief Wabara was in Mexico. The President of the Senate staunchly believes that once Comrade Oshiomhole is acquainted with the facts he will definitely have a better appreciation of the situation in the Senate. Indeed the President of the Senate will in the coming days be briefing civil society groups in the country on the situation of things in the Senate. "It is however the wish of Chief Wabara that respected persons should desist from making inflammatory statement on current events in the Senate until they are fully acquainted with the facts."

On his part, Obasanjo reaffirmed his commitment to the anti-corruption crusade, noting that no person regardless of his status would be spared.

The President assured Nigerians that the Presidency and PDP would never influence or handmarked the senators from performing their roles especially in getting to the root of the current scandal. "I is a senate issue, not PDP. PDP and my government had no hand no the Senate President and will not interfere."

He said that the law would run its full course in the matter and appealed to Nigerians to support his government fight against corruption.

Responding to Lagos Governor Bola Tinubu statement that the stopage of the state allocation had made it impossible to meet the needs of the citizens especially in area of payment of salary to the workers, Obasanjo said it otherwise would amount to commiting impeachable office.

"The oath I took is that I will protect and defend the constitution. The Nigerian constitution put the number are name of local government. In the state that created new local government, the old one has been abolished. If you are to do otherwise and release the allocation will amount to an impeachable offence.

Earlier Tinubu had accused Obasanjo's government of deliberately abusing the principles of separation of power and frustrating the effort of Lagos government.

He said that resort to undermining the role of judiciary in a matter between two tiers of government will endanger the democratic project and urged the Federal Government to retrace its steps.

"Federal Government should allow separation, rather than use its might to block it. Crisis in the states and local units are treacable to Abuja, because Federal Government believes that rel-on rule of law is in vein," said Tinubu.

As the workers across the country celebrated the May Day yesterday, the following is the state-by-state report.

IMO

The Chairman of the Imo State chapter of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Mr. Steve Ibe yesterday said that the only solution to the problems confronting the Nigerian nation would be for the leadership to completely purge itself.

In his address at the Workers Day celebration held at the Dan Anyiam Stadium Owerri, Ibe said the problem of our society lies with the leadership and not the followership.

To him, the leaders and the elite are responsible for 70 per cent of our problem, while the followers are responsible for 30 per cent of the problems.

Mr. Ibe further expressed support for the Tripod Vision of the Imo State government which include, Agriculture, Industrialisation and Reorientation, but however advised the goveranment that the programme would only succeed if pursued vigorously.

In his goodwill message, Governor Achike Udenwa commented the NLC for appreciating the essence of dialogue which "it had adopted in the handling of most issues affecting workers and government."

He said the welfare of Imo workers remains upper most in all the considerations of his administration adding that it was as a result of that payment of salaries is spread across the board to make every civil and public servant have a feel of democracy.

The governor used the forum to express dismay over the dastardly murder of the chairman of Alvan Ikoku College of Education Academic Staff Union, Chief Uche Ogbe by yet to be identified assassins last month.

DELTA

Delta State Governor, Chief James Ibori, has called for caution on the issue of the payment of the 12.5 per cent wage increase and the implementation of the monetisation policy to the workers in the state.

He said his government was looking into the implications of both policies to ensure that whatever decision it takes would be in the interest of workers and sustainable development in the state.

In his goodwill message on the May Day celebration held in Asaba yesterday, Ibori noted that "we shall remain very watchful to ensure that there is no manipulation of standing rules and regulations in favour of any worker in the state public service."

He assured that no official or member of any trade union would be victimised as a result of the pursuit of legitimate demands of labour. The governor however said that it was also his expectation that organised labour would not encourage unruly behaviour, destruction of public or private property, as well as assault on citizens under the guise of enforcing labour directives.

"While labour and government may not always view issues from the same perspective, our differences should not and must not bring us to the brink of precipicem," Ibori noted.

According to the governor, differences in all facets of life would always exist, but the management of these differences was a manifestation of the quality of leadership.

He however appealed labour to put the interest of the nation and indeed Delta State above all considerations, adding that common interest could not be served by aggression in pursuit of legitimate labour demands.

Ibori also charged the workers to resolve to put in a full day's work for a full day's pay while calling on labour leaders to embark on regular orientation and re-orientation of its members.

KWARA

Workers in Kwara State yesterday joined their colleagues to celebrate the May Day, universally dubbed Workers Day with a sharp condemnation of all forms of sectarian groupings.

The Workers through their chairman Comrade Emmanuel Aiyeoribe, lamented that crucial and national issues have been reduced to regional where serving governors and former heads of states takes front rows.

In a veiled reference to such groupings as the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) Ohaneze Ndigbo etc, the workers expressed fears that the continued dominance of such groupings in national affairs may pose serious threat to the nation's corporate unity.

"Instead of uniting the country and giving it a progressive focus, it continues to peddle ethnic, regional, state and selfish interests."

The workers continued, "public discourse is daily being defiled by the arrogant and self-justifying rhetoric of identity politics which is complete subversive on nation building."

The workers argued that instead of advancing the dividends of democracy to Nigerians, the secretarian caucuses have been turning Nigerians against themselves.

"Rather, they tend to canvass who is enemy to whom and to seek to choose for our people who their enemies should be. In reality, having failed to use state power for the advancement of the people's welfare, they are the real enemies of the people."

On the local scene, the Kwara workers expressed concern on the development at the state polytechnic.

Aiyeribo hinted that the development believed the commitment of the Governor, Bukola Saraki administration to workers welfare and the development of the state.

He called on the governor as the visitor to the institution to intervene by calling the council of the institution to order and ensure the withdrawal of the vexed circular to avert the looming industrial crisis.

In his goodwill message to the occasion, Governor Bukola Saraki stressed the need for labour unions to explore the option of dialogue and consultation.

BAUCHI

Bauchi State council of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called on President Olusegun Obasanjo to rectify the abnormalities in the nation's income consumption, employment and productivity policies so as to ensure socio-economic development of the country and enhance workers welfare, too.

Making the call in a speech he delivered on the occasion of this year's May Day celebration of the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Stadium (ATBS), Bauchi, the state chairman of NLC Comrade Ilyasu Ibrahim Zwal said that public policies should be aimed at "enriching and empowering and not impoverishing and weakening Nigerians."

According to him, "they should be in the best interest of the generality of Nigerians and not of international capitalism and a few Nigerians," saying that "the minimum income to cut down on consumption and minimum on inflation has only led to our pitiful economic condition and the impoverishment of not only Nigerian workers but also other Nigerians who benefit from the trickle down effects of salaries and wages."

Zwal said that workers in Bauchi State were lucky to have a "purposeful and dynamic leader with progressive mind in the person of Governor Ahmadu Adamu Mu'azu who has devoted his energy and all the resources at his disposal towards the development of the state," pointing out the civil servants in the state would continue to play a vital role in the overall development of the state.

He however called on the state government to address the issue of the 12.5 per cent increase; the National Housing Fund Scheme; owner occupies housing programme in all government quarters and allocation of land specifically to workers in the state as well as proper disbursement of vehicle loan to civil servants and motorcycle loans.

PLATEAU

In Plateau State, Governor Joshua Dariye has stated that it behoved on every Nigerian to protect and sustain the present democratic structure in the country.

Dariye who stated this yesterday at the May Day celebration in jos noted that the delebration should not be used for apportioning blame but as a watershed to ensuring team work for the development and progress of the state and the nation as a whole.

The governor who was represented by his deputy, Chief Michael Bot-Mang averred that "as partners in progress, we should be committed to improving the standard of living of our people.

His words, "It is our collective responsibility to ensure that the public sector in a civil democracy performs its role of ensuring industrial harmony, promoting efficiency and instilling discipline in public service."

He disclosed that what was uppermost with the governent was the empowerment of the people and participation of the local populace in governance.

Furthermore, he assured that government was committed to alleviating poverty by providing social infrastructure, especially at the grassroot level.

"My government is sensitive to workers' plight and we will always take appropriate measures to enhance the working conditions and performance of public servants," he affirmed.

EKITI

In Ekiti State the NLC described the regular payment of workers salary being witnessed presently as the dividend of its cooperation and good relationship with the Governor, Ayo Fayose.

NLC chairman in the state, Comrade Suyi Aribisala at the May Day rally at Oluyemi Kayode Stadium Ado-Ekiti yesterday defended labour's romance with government in the state, saying it has been able to improve the welfare of not only the workers but also the generality of the citizens of the state.

"Fayose's administration has resolved to pay wages of workers by the 25th of each month. This is no mean achievement considering that some more buoyant states owe their workers several months arrears of salary," he said.

He disclosed further that Governor Fayose remains one of only five governors in the federation who have decided to commence the payment of arrears of pensioners, adding that such triumph was made possible by NLC/government cooperation which he vowed would be sustained under his leadership.

Aribisala said he had choosen to ignore those criticising labour leaders in the state for being too friendly with government, saying his priority was to employ pragmatic and democratic approach and get workers' entitlements for them as at when due.

At the rally, the Ekiti State chapter of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) called on the Federal Government to amend labour law in the country which gives recognition to one central labour organisation and register the TUC as the labour centre for all senior staff (workers) in the country.

According to TUC's secretary in the state Mr. Kolawole Olaiya who addressed the rally, the present situation in which government chooses to relate with only one labour centre and ignore 24 senior staff bodies is undemocratic and unjust.

In his speech, Governor Ayo Fayose dismissed insinuation of using financial enticement to secure cooperation from labour leaders in the state.

OSUN

Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola of Osun State yesterday reiterated the commitment of his administration towards creating 300,000 jobs within four years in office.

Addressing workers in the state in commoration of this year's Workers Day celebration held at Osogbo Sports Stadium, Prince Oyinlola stated that, this was aimed at creating employment and alleviating poverty in the state.

According to him, "in this regard, the United Nations Development Programme Sustainable Human Development programme in Osun State is being planned to create several thousands of jobs especially in the rural areas."

While contending that "our haphazard policies and lack of an effective planning over the years have contributed significantly to the precarious situation in which we the governor stated that ministries and goals needed to be re-ordered.

Oyinlola added that, "the society itself should share the blame for the intolerable level to which our economic development has sunk, saying that, "several millions of our youths are unemployed while numerous graduates are roaming the streets."

His words: "In Osun State, we have embarked on a number of measures aimed at creating employment and alleviating poverty in the society. We believe that our goal of creating 300,000 jobs over a period of four years is attainable."

LAGOS

In Lagos the Governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and members of the National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) took the case against the decision of President Olusegun Obasanjo to withhold statutory allocation due to local governments in the state from the Federation Account to Nigerian workers.

While Governor Tinubu read a May Day address in which he urged the Federal Government to respect the constitution by reversing the decision, NULGE staged a mini-demonstration during the parade.

Both events took place in the presence of President Obasanjo, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Honourable Bello Masari, President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Adams Oshiomohole, Minister of Communications, Chief Cornelius Adebayo, Minister of Labour, Produc-tivity and Employment, Alhaji Hassan and many other dignitaries.

Restating the background to the state's recent dispute with the Federal Government over the stoppage of allocation to local councils, Tinubu said the administration complied with all constitutional provisions in the creation of the additional local governments and that they have been running their affairs.