Reports that Nigeria has the highest number of registered delegates at the just concluded 112th session of the International Labour Conference (ILC) in Geneva, Switzerland have stirred fresh criticism.
Analysts have described the list as insensitive of the economic situation and a violation of a pending presidential directive.
The list released by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) showed that Nigeria’s delegation to the conference was the largest of the 187 countries represented at the event.
The Nigerian contingent, led by the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, comprised 289 registered delegates.
The list included 108 registered as “government delegates” and 62 names identified as “employers’ delegates.”
The document also listed 116 others under “worker’s delegates”, while two were identified as “persons accompanying the minister.”
The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero and the President of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Festus Osifo, were registered as workers’ delegates.
Many people who commented on the matter on social media said it will be difficult for Nigeria to address its economic challenges.
“Why do you think the naira has failed to appreciate against the US dollar?” Michael John, who commented on Facebook, asked.
“It is because we deplete our foreign reserve with needless travels,” he said.
Another commentator, Musbahu Aliyu, said Nigerians deserve a place in the Guinness Book of Record.
“If you check the names of those that travelled, I can assure you that by the time they return, and you ask some of them to give you a report on what transpired there, it is very unlikely if they can,” he said.
“The overall aim is just to travel,” he said.
Brazil was second behind Nigeria with 191 delegates, followed by Argentina with 156 representatives.
Mexico also had 140 delegates, while Ghana’s contingent comprised 133 people.
The 112th ILC ended on June 14. The key issues addressed at the event included the protection of workers against the effects of climate change and biological hazards, the care economy and fundamental principles and rights at work.
Nigerians at the event
A further breakdown of the delegation showed that the minister of labour was accompanied by the permanent secretary in the ministry, Abubakar Ismaila and a director in the ministry, Inuwa Yakubu.
There was also the government delegation such as attaché on labour in the Nigerian Permanent Mission to Geneva, Essah Aniefiok Etim and the director of employment and wages in the ministry, John Audu Nyamali.
The list also comprised 20 substitute delegates and advisers, 10 persons appointed to replace the advisers, and individuals listed as “other persons attending the conference” from different agencies and parastatals, together making up the rest of the 289-strong delegation.
ILO delegation echoes COP28
The Nigerian delegation to the ILC is a repeat of the large number that the country took to the COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates with President Bola Tinubu as leader of the delegation.
According to a list published by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Nigeria was third-highest overall in number of delegates at that conference.
Nigeria’s joint-third largest with delegates from China with 1,411 badges each was beaten by the host UAE and Brazil.
The uproar forced the president to announce new rules for international travel.
Mockery of presidential guideline on travel
Analysts are worried that the huge delegation violates the presidential guideline on official travel, which the uproar forced the president to announce in January.
The new rule announced by the president’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, said it was intended to be a 60 per cent cut in public expenditure for official travel delegations.
Ngelale said under the directive, security on the ground in the host country would be used in future travels.
He said by the new directive, the First Lady can have five persons in her official travel abroad, while she is allowed to have 10 persons for local travels.
He further stated that ministers and heads of ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) would have no more than four and two persons, respectively, in their delegations for foreign trips.
Similarly, he said the wife of the vice president is also to have 10 persons at the most in her delegation for local travels.
‘Delegation insensitive to the economy’
Reacting, the Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, Auwalu Musa Rafsanjani said the government had failed to honour its promise to slash official travel delegation, adding that the pronouncements, which the government fail on, were usually done informally, and not from clear policy articulation and implementation.
“This is at a time the government is finding it difficult to agree on a living wage for workers and these spending for estacodes and per diem would be done from borrowing and depletion of our country’s reserve,” he said.
In his reaction, a former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Ekiti State, Dayo Akinlaja (SAN), said the government might be facing a conflict between administrative convenience and economic dictates, which may explain the large representation.
“However, there is every justification for people to be affronted when it is learnt that we have the largest delegation to such a forum against the backdrop of the ravaging economic doldrums in the country,” he said.
“All I would say here is that there is a need to balance administrative considerations with economic impacts.
“Anything short of that gives the impression that those in charge are insensitive to the plight of the masses and this is gravely unfair,” the senior lawyer said.
Similarly, the Executive Director of the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), Eze Onyekpere described the delegation as “an unfortunate situation that fails to reflect the spirit of the hard times and the reality of an almost collapsed economy.”
He called for the reprimand of the planners of the trip as it was “insensitive” to spend so much in a depressed economy, whether the delegates were from the government or organised labour.
“At the governmental level, there should be a fiscal policy framework that stipulates the numbers allowed to travel in such circumstances otherwise, we will keep repeating the same fiscal felony,” he said.
Efforts to speak to presidential spokespersons, Bayo Onanuga and Ajuri Ngelale, were not successful as of the time of filing this report.
They did not answer calls and did not also respond to text and WhatsApp messages sent to them.
The reason for the calls was to find out whether the presidency was aware that different agencies of government dispatched representatives for the Geneva conference.
Also, labour leaders could not be reached for comment.
A source at the Labour House, in Abuja, said most of those that travelled for the event were on their way back to Nigeria.
“Most of them left Switzerland in the morning today (yesterday) and they would have a stopover in Addis Ababa, Dubai, Doha, among others because they would use connecting flights,” the source said.
It’s a huge cost
A report by LEADERSHIP said that the trip to Geneva was at a huge cost to Nigeria.
It said an investigation showed that Nigeria would have spent about N1.5 billion on the trip with 289 delegates.
“This includes N928.2 million for accommodation and N578 million for the cost of procuring air tickets for all the delegates.
“For instance, the NH Geneva Airport Hotel in Switzerland’s capital city costs an average of $194 per night and offers complimentary breakfast”.
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