The National Union of Non Academic
Staff of Universities and Allied
Institution (NASU), National
Examinations Council (NECO) chapter
on Thursday threatened to forcefully
eject the Registrar of the council,
Promise Okpala from his office next
Monday if the ministry of education
does not announce his re-
appointment.
In a statement made available to Channel
Television in Minna, Niger state, the
Chairman of the union in the Council,
Lawal Rabana said since the expiration
of the tenure of the Registrar on April 9,
there had not been any official
pronouncement from the ministry of
education, a situation that is creating
tension in the institution.
The statement added that since no
pronouncement had been made
regarding his re-appointment and the
fact that the registrar had not added any
value to the council in the last five years,
he should please stay out of office
because he had loss the confidence of
the workers.
“Professor Promise Okpala has not
added any value to NECO and Nigerian
children need someone without
credibility question to shape their future,
we urge the honourable minister of
education to get more involved in NECO’s
affairs in order to re-channel it towards
the aspirations of its founding fathers’’
the statement concluded.
There has been a lingering dispute
between the staff at NECO and the
Registrar over the rights of the workers
to join a trade union. Mr Okpala has
rejected the unionisation move of the
NECO staff.
The disagreement had lingered since
2005 in the matter of trade dispute
Number IAP/HB/3744 between Non-
Academic Staff Union of Education and
Associated Institutions (NASU) and three
other examination bodies – Joint
Admissions and Matriculation Board
(JAMB), National Examinations Council
(NECO) and National Business and
Technical Examinations Board (NABTEB).
The dispute was referred to the
Industrial Arbitration Panel (IAP) by
Hassan Muhammed Lawal the then
Minister of Labour and Productivity on
15 August, 2005.
In the ruling signed by three arbitrators
– Rufus O. Orugho, Aureol D. Vianana
and Lawal Yusuf – the panel said: “One
of the main purposes of a trade union is
to defend the rights of its members
wherever it appears to it that the rights
of such members are being
transgressed upon.”
It then declared, “The tribunal, having
carefully considered all the evidences
before it and the applicable laws and
having regard to the principles of equity,
make the following awards: An order
compelling NECO, JAMB and NABTEB to
allow NASU unfettered right to unionize
the workers of their establishments
throughout the federation and an order
of perpetual injunction restraining NECO,
JAMB and NABTEB from intimidating,
threatening or victimizing any of their
workers in any manner whatsoever on
the grounds that such workers(s) decide
to participate or actually participated in
trade union activities with NASU”.
While JAMB has actually unionized its
staff, NECO is not only adamant but also
said to be intimidating its staff on the
matter.
Within the past three months when the
case was reopened by the NECO staff, 24
members of staff, seen to be
championing unionization in the body,
have been transferred.