Workers in Kogi State, under the aegis of Concerned Workers, said they have uncovered plots by some mischief makers who made fruitless efforts to malign the person and integrity of Comr. Onuh Edoka, Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress.

The Group in a statement signed by Comr. Ayodele Obagayi cautioned the mischief-makers from making unsubstantiated allegations of corruption against the NLC Chairman and maintained that the writer and the write-up were a figment of imagination, totally laced with concocted and unsubstantiated lies to malign the person of the NLC Chairman in Kogi State and who has been in the vanguard agitating for workers welfare.

The Group was reacting to a publication championed by an online Newspaper Kogi Flame with the caption “Kogi Workers May Down Tool Over Plans By NLC To Deduct Their Salaries”, and regretted that the sponsors of the author of the write-up got it all wrong, most especially that the NLC Chairman, without mincing words, has in the last seven years, sustained the struggle for workers welfare with integrity and without compromise.

The group said ordinarily it would have kept mute on the issues raised by the author of the said publication, but said for the discerning public who may be misled by the misinformation, decided to ensure that the public is kept abreast on the frivolous allegation leveled against the NLC under the leadership of Comrade Onuh Edoka that are all lies.

The group reiterated that at no time did the workers in the State plan to down tool over the alleged move to deduct their salaries for the funding of the Labour House.

Part of the statement read: ” Since Comrade Onuh Edoka took over the mantle of NLC leadership about seven years ago, the interest of both State and Local Government workers have remained his priority. We are bold to state that on the assumption of office during his acceptance speech as the State NLC Chairman, he promised to uphold the confidence reposed in him by ensuring that the welfare of workers remains the top priority of his administration.

” The author in the said publication accused Edoka of being corrupt but could not pinpoint any fact or petition against the Chairman that found him wanting of any corrupt practice or has ever been found wanting by the relevant authorities in the fight against corruption”.

” We have checked from available records, that neither citizens, workers nor officials in Kogi State or beyond have written to the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offense, (ICPC), have petitioned the agency that Edoka is corrupt as widely said in the write up”.

” It is on record that he sacrificed all entreaties and overture, stood in discomfort without accepting offers to mortgage the interest of Kogi workers”

” On the purported plans to deduct N3000.00 from salaries of civil servants in three installments of N1000.00 effective from July 2022 to build Labour House. We make bold to state that at no time was any meeting, or memo seeking the consent of workers to the effect that any deduction would be carried out from their salaries communicated to the State Head of Service.

” It is no longer news that since the creation of Kogi State in 1991. The NLC has no residence of its own. They have always rented apartments to pilot the affairs of the labor Union for over 30 years.

” We must however commend Comr. Edoka who was Chairman decided to change the narratives. The Labour House which is open for investigation with pictorial evidence attached has reached 98 percent completion in the project without the NLC Chairman seeking workers contribution”.

” It is important to state that if the NLC owns a property that it can call its own, rather than commendation that the building would outlive the Comr. Edoka’s leadership and for other NLC Leadership to use, we are surprised that mischief-makers would choose to dissipate energy on frivolity and what is not in existence.

” Surprisingly, Kogi State, remains one State the NLC does not own a building housing its office, yet, we make bold to say that against all odds, the leadership of Comr. Edoka has stood in the gap for a struggle for better welfare for Kogi workers, without compromise.

” We wish to state that in an attempt to malign the integrity of Comr Edoka, names of nonexistent Civil Servants mentioned in the said report that spoke to the online medium we have discovered are not workers in the Kogi State Civil Service but mentioned to achieve the devilish intention of the author, which to our satisfaction, the write up was disregarded by the entire Kogi workers as neither here nor there.

We, therefore, call on the author of the said publication, sponsored by some disgruntled element who wanted to score cheap points, aimed at destroying the image of NLC under the leadership of Onuh Edoka to within the next 48 hours through a retraction, tender an unreserved apology, or face legal action.

Let it be placed on record that it was our encouragement and calls for the NLC Chairman to contest the National Assembly election. Unfortunately, all our efforts failed as he failed to harken to our call even though he possesses all the prerequisites to serve in the National Assembly. That the writer was on a mission to tarnish a reputation built over the years was not in doubt, unfortunately, his antics failed flat like a pack of cards, and his attempt at achieving a selfish interest for pecuniary gains for a quality he is well known for could not be realized.

We wish to state that the write-up against Comr Edoka was concocted to pitch workers against the leadership of NLC who over the years has fought tirelessly towards the actualization and the implementation of new minimum wage, cash backing of promotion arrears among others.

While we urge the Workers of Kogi State to discard the write-up as published by the online medium as laced with concocted lies, it should be discarded in the trash bin, as it is as worthless a piece, to bring to disrepute the good name of a labor leader who by all intent and purposes made Kogi State Workers proud in the last seven years.

While on the scale of balance, we can convincingly say that amidst all the challenges, the NLC Chairman has scored an excellent mark in ensuring that Kogi workers get what is due to them in the present circumstance., under the aegis of Concerned Workers, said they have uncovered plots by some mischief makers who made fruitless efforts to malign the person and integrity of Comr. Onuh Edoke, Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress.

The Group in a press statement signed by Comr. Ayodele Obagayi cautioned the mischief-makers from making unsubstantiated allegations of corruption against the NLC Chairman and maintained that the writer and the write-up were a figment of imagination, totally laced with concocted and unsubstantiated lies to malign the person of the NLC Chairman in Kogi State and who has been in the vanguard agitating for workers welfare.

The Group was reacting to a publication championed by an online Newspaper Kogi Flame with the caption “Kogi Workers May Down Tool Over Plans By NLC To Deduct Their Salaries”, and regretted that the sponsors of the author of the write-up got it all wrong, most especially that the NLC Chairman, without mincing words, has in the last seven years, sustained the struggle for workers welfare with integrity and without compromise.

The group said ordinarily it would have kept mute on the issues raised by the author of the said publication, but said for the discerning public who may be misled by the misinformation, decided to ensure that the public is kept abreast on the frivolous allegation leveled against the NLC under the leadership of Comrade Onuh Edoka that are all lies.

The group reiterated that at no time did the workers in the State plan to down tool over the alleged move to deduct their salaries for the funding of the Labour House.

Part of the statement read: ” Since Comrade Onuh Edoka took over the mantle of NLC leadership about seven years ago, the interest of both State and Local Government workers have remained his priority. We are bold to state that on the assumption of office during his acceptance speech as the State NLC Chairman, he promised to uphold the confidence reposed in him by ensuring that the welfare of workers remains the top priority of his administration.

” The author in the said publication accused Edoka of being corrupt but could not pinpoint any fact or petition against the Chairman that found him wanting of any corrupt practice or has ever been found wanting by the relevant authorities in the fight against corruption”.

” We have checked from available records, that neither citizens, workers nor officials in Kogi State or beyond have written to the Economic and Finacial Crime Commission, (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offense, (ICPC), have petitioned the agency that Edoka is corrupt as widely said in the write up”.

” It is on record that he sacrificed all entreaties and overture, stood in discomfort without accepting offers to mortgage the interest of Kogi workers”

” On the purported plans to deduct N3000.00 from salaries of civil servants in three installments of N1000.00 effective from July 2022 to build Labour House. We make bold to state that at no time was any meeting, or memo seeking the consent of workers to the effect that any deduction would be carried out from their salaries communicated to the State Head of Service.

” It is no longer news that since the creation of Kogi State in 1991. The NLC has no residence of its own. They have always rented apartments to pilot the affairs of the labor Union for over 30 years.

” We must however commend Comr. Edoka who was Chairman decided to change the narratives. The Labour House which is open for investigation with pictorial evidence attached has reached 98 percent completion in the project without the NLC Chairman seeking workers contribution”.

” It is important to state that if the NLC owns a property that it can call its own, rather than commendation that the building would outlive the Comr. Edoka’s leadership and for other NLC Leadership to use, we are surprised that mischief-makers would choose to dissipate energy on frivolity and what is not in existence.

” Surprisingly, Kogi State, remains one State the NLC does not own a building housing its office, yet, we make bold to say that against all odds, the leadership of Comr. Edoka has stood in the gap for a struggle for better welfare for Kogi workers, without compromise.

” We wish to state that in an attempt to malign the integrity of Comr Edoka, names of nonexistent Civil Servants mentioned in the said report that spoke to the online medium we have discovered are not workers in the Kogi State Civil Service but mentioned to achieve the devilish intention of the author, which to our satisfaction, the write up was disregarded by the entire Kogi workers as neither here nor there.

We, therefore, call on the author of the said publication, sponsored by some disgruntled element who wanted to score cheap points, aimed at destroying the image of NLC under the leadership of Onuh Edoka to within the next 48 hours through a retraction, tender an unreserved apology, or face legal action.

Let it be placed on record that it was our encouragement and calls for the NLC Chairman to contest the National Assembly election. Unfortunately, all our efforts failed as he failed to harken to our call even though he possesses all the prerequisites to serve in the National Assembly. That the writer was on a mission to tarnish a reputation built over the years was not in doubt, unfortunately, his antics failed flat like a pack of cards, and his attempt at achieving a selfish interest for pecuniary gains for a quality he is well known for could not be realized.

We wish to state that the write-up against Comr Edoka was concocted to pitch workers against the leadership of NLC who over the years has fought tirelessly towards the actualization and the implementation of new minimum wage, cash backing of promotion arrears among others.

While we urge the Workers of Kogi State to discard the write-up as published by the online medium as laced with concocted lies, it should be discarded in the trash bin, as it is as worthless a piece, to bring to disrepute the good name of a labor leader who by all intent and purposes made Kogi State Workers proud in the last seven years.

While on the scale of balance, we can convincingly say that amidst all the challenges, the NLC Chairman has scored an excellent mark in ensuring that Kogi workers get what is due to them in the present circumstance.