Opinion: How are the mighty fallen?

By ‘Kayode Oyero

I was at the Alausa Lagos office of the Corporate Affairs Commission in Jobi Fele axis of the state recently. Done with transaction, I proceeded to the wicket gate of the two story building. Two men chattered loudly at the exit point:

“Remove that cap!” one said to the other. Of course his tone was jocular but beneath the hilarity was a firm seriousness. “Remove that cap!” he repeated. I looked at whom he was referring to – a man of same age range with his, perhaps they are friends. The friend on the receiving side smiled with tacit dissatisfaction. On his head was a cap with NLC insignia etched on it, at the center front.

“That organization is a dead one,” the talking friend reinforced. The friend with the cap on smiled again, perhaps taking solace in silence. They both laughed.

While commuting home that day, I busied myself with trip to memory lane. I was not too young in those early days of the fourth republic not to know of the firm grip Nigeria Labour Congress had over the totality of the Nigerian work force, even Federal Government. Staying not too far from earshot, we picked tidbits of evening socio-political chats between our parents and their friends who were also our neighbours. We savoured the robust discussions and sometimes vibrant arguments of these politically savvy models and opinion-leaders. They analyzed Nigeria thoroughly. They were our socio-political debaters.

In those good old days, they told how the NLC and FG were like the Sun and the moon that hardly meets and when they met on few necessary occasions, the result was an eclipse of fisticuffs – battle of the titans sort of. They told how NLC stood tall; never bowing, cowing or stooping to anyone, not even FG; how her dignity and integrity was unquestionable and sterling; how her decisions were formidable and irreversible with taut grip on all across the age spectrum; how that the congress lived up to her name as the Iku Baba Yeye (god that FG literally deified, revered and appeased).

The name, Adams Oshiomole rang a bell during their discussions. They said he was the Karl Marx for Nigerian workers. I saw him few times on the TV whenever we were allowed to watch TV but heard every evening about his larger-than-life personality as he pursued purpose with passion.

In the Oshiomole days, who dares defy the movement’s injunction like it was flagrantly disregarded on Wednesday 18th of May 2016. Not even multinational companies in the country. The fear of NLC and Oshiomole at the center was the beginning common sense and caution for FG.

In those good old days, short but yet enigmatic, dogged and resolute, when Oshiomole speaks for NLC, the oracle has spoken and it is final as far as all was concerned, his pronouncement were very popular. With Oshiomole at the movement’s helm, NLC was a terror to FG. But all these precious moments are now reduced to crumbs of memories and once-upon-a-time tales to regal kiddies at moonlight stories-tellings.

Oshiomole may have had what his successors did not have and his many gallant victories may be attributed to the certain attributes he possessed. Asides that he was a lion-hearted unionist and not chicken-hearted or lily-livered, dogged, rugged and indefatigable with a tenacious aura and grace that is hard to describe and not easily yielded to compromise, Oshiomole had a consultation-before-confrontation strategy. Not a single war did he embark upon without sampling and considering grass-root opinions and feelings. Like Karl Marx, he was the fearless leopard who mobilized millions of dogs to war, wrestling determinedly with the few lions of the FG and exploitative tendencies of the few cabalistic bourgeoisies.

From 1999 to 2007 when he was at the vanguard of the union, Nigerian workers harvested testimonies of the trophies he won from his risky wrestles. The former General and President, Olusegun Obasanjo may not forget him in a hurry.

But from the Abdul-Wahab Omar days in 2007 to the Ayuba Wabba days, things fell apart internally for the union maybe because their center was loose: their falconer could not hear the falcon masses. Bread and butter unionism characterized the day, hence loss of membership trusts in her as the voice of the voiceless and the defender of the defendless.

Many things may have been responsible for this nosedive and reduction in influence. Clear-cut indications showed that from the post-Oshiomole’s days, the leadership of the union lost sight of the focus of its establishment which is to protect the interest and well-being of members. The movement was seen chasing mundane things instead of pursuing and rightfully fulfilling her sole mandate of being the shield and strong tower where all workers can take refuge from class humiliation and oppression. The Kriston-lally housing scheme, a multi-billion Naira housing scandal in which thousands of her members who paid are yet to get anything may be part of the cause.

Of course, like all falls, this fatal fall from prestige to ingloriousness did not happened in a day. Just as one punch does not crash down an opponent in the game of boxing, series of mis-priorities, mistakes and misdeeds culminated to the defeat of the once all-powerful NLC. Series of little foxes spoilt the vine for her. Politicking, finger-pointing, witch-hunting, corruption, strife, rivalry, unsubmissiveness, sectionalism, dirty permutations amongst many other little punches inadvertently downed the once-upon-a-time Iroko called NLC.

It is not surprising though, when a soldier allows himself to be carried away by side-attractions and distractions, no one needs a clairvoyance to forecast that defeat is more than imminent.

Like the proverbial Omoye, NLC has raced wildly and nakedly into the market of shame and she is sprinting gradually into that of irrelevance, national disregard and saltlessness. She may not have the enigmatic effect and influence it once had over national workforce movement in Nigeria.

Like the proverbial Omoye, NLC’s relevance may have gone beyond redemption. How this came about, I don’t have a concrete idea of. But when a movement fails to represent the interest of majority of her members, loss of confidence may be the aftermath; when the leadership of a movement like hers, constituted to be the mouthpiece of all Nigerian workers starts being the mouthpiece of her belly, the present is the result; when a movement allows ‘who gets what and how’ to override the discharge of her functions, the present is the only obtainable; when the purpose of a thing is not known, abuse, they say is inevitable.

Far from being a prophet of doom or a pessimist, with the recent Kwashiorkor strike of Wednesday May 18 2016 that was flagrantly shunned by bulk of her members at the grass root across the federation due to loss of trust and confidence, it may be a fatal end for NLC – a plunge into the abyss of dis-reckon or it may not.

Like that man said to his friend up there at the gate of the Alausa Lagos office of the Corporate Affairs Commission, NLC may be truly dead already and waiting for the obsequies of ‘scrapping’ to be performed.

Yet, the largest room in life is that of improvement. May be the congress will find remedy and pursue after redemption by retracing her steps and examine how it fell, thereby making a u-turn and return to priority and clue. Maybe she will re-invent herself like the mythical phoenix. Maybe a renaissance generation of leaders will emerge and reinstall the loss glory. May be we would all like to put on caps with her logo like we once proudly did. May be it is a new beginning altogether for her. What kind of new beginning I cannot tell. Time will definitely tell.

______________________________________

Op–ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija

 

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

cool good eh love2 cute confused notgood numb disgusting fail