The Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) has bemoaned the suspension of its activities in Lagos State by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
It said the suspension and the setting up of a 35-member caretaker committee to run the affairs of the association is unconstitutional.
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The association’s Deputy National President, Administration, Abubakar Muhammad Bishara, in a statement at the weekend, said RTEAN is a trade union which is governed by the Trade Unions Act as well as its constitution approved by the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
“None of the provisions of the Trade Unions Act confers or gives any power to any state governor to suspend the activities of any Trade Union nor empowers the Governor of Lagos State or any other state to appoint a caretaker committee for a Trade Union as a branch of it,” he said.
While noting that the governor decided to suspend the activities of the union over a fracas that took place in two of the over 320 chapels of the body in Lagos; Bishara accused Sanwo-Olu of appointing the person that allegedly orchestrated the fracas into the caretaker committee.
He said the governor could have ordered security operatives to quell the crisis in the two chapels instead of suspending the activities of the association and drafting soldiers and other security agents to seal up the state secretariat of the body, where the fracas didn’t take place.
While calling on the governor to unseal its premises, RTEAN said the crisis was caused by disagreement over the legality or otherwise of the National President of the body to also double as the Lagos State branch chairman.
He advised aggrieved members to approach the court instead of instigating violence.
