Chris Ngige and NLC chairman, Wabba
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has warned that there will be
industrial crisis if President Muhammadu Buhari returns Chris Ngige as
minister of labour and productivity.
In an interview with PUNCH, Peter Ozo-Eson, NLC secretary, called
on the federal government to give Ngige a new portfolio in the next
cabinet.
Ngige is one of the 43 ministerial nominees undergoing screening by the senate.
The former minister of labour had clashed with NLC leaders over his
delayed inauguration of the National Social Insurance Trust Fund
(NSITF) board.
Ozo-Eson accused the Ngige of being unfit, saying he lacks an understanding of how the ministry works.
“We think that government will be looking for problem if Ngige
is returned to the Ministry of Labour and Productivity as minister
because he does not understand how the place works and his own approach
will create an unnecessary industrial crisis,” he said.
“If the government is properly advised, it should look for
where to put him. Ngige is a square peg in a round hole in the
ministry.”
In reaction, Nwachukwu Obidiwe, personal assistant to Ngige, said the former minister has no personal rift with the NLC leaders.
“It is the responsibility of the president to appoint and
assign portfolios to ministers. Ngige will willingly serve in whichever
ministry the president so decides. Besides, he has no personal issue
with labour,” he said.
“What happened at the end of the last term was a matter of
steadfastness to the rule of law or otherwise. He chose the rule of law
in respect of the appointment of the chairman of the board of the
NSITF.
“Don’t forget that labour later saw reason with his action,
forcing the (former) president of the TUC at the valedictory organised
by the ministry on May 26, 2019, to apologise on behalf of labour while
commending him for his unimpeachable labour administration style.”
It would be recalled that labour unions and some Nigerians had
taken on Ngige for saying that Nigeria had no problem with doctors
leaving the country because there were more than enough of them in the
country to man hospitals.