By Jethro Ibileke
The Caretaker Committee of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Edo State council, has said that the labour environment in the today cannot and must not inspire celebration.
NLC stated this in a statement on Thursday, titled “A May Day That Must Not Hold” to mark this year’s Workers’ Day.
The Chairman, Caretaker Committee of Edo NLC, Prof. Monday Lewis Igbafen, who signed the statement, described May 1 of as a day to reflect on the rights of labour, to honor the sweat and sacrifice of workers.
NLC in the state is currently divided, with Prof. Igbafen heading a faction recognized by the national leadership of the Union while Bernard Eguakhide heading the faction supported by the State Government.
Apparently alluding to the division, Igbafen said the labour environment in Edo today cannot and must not inspire celebration.
“May Day is a sacred global occasion. It belongs to the toiling working class — the proletariat. It is a day to reflect on the rights of labour, to honor the sweat and sacrifice of workers, and to celebrate our collective hand in building the wealth of nations.
“Let it be said plainly: May Day is not for the oppressor. It is not for the compradors, the bourgeoisie, or the employers of labour to parade their dominance. It was never meant to celebrate the conquest of workers’ autonomy, nor to mask the strangulation of independent trade unionism.
“Other State Councils of the NLC across this federation may, perhaps, find reason to roll out drums on May Day. But we, the Caretaker Committee of the Edo State NLC, speaking for every right-thinking worker in this state, declare without apology: the labour environment in Edo today cannot and must not inspire celebration. For how can a people divided ever be joyful?”, he queried.
Igbafen added: “Edo NLC is in a quagmire. We are locked in struggle against the combined forces of reactionaries, impostors, self-imposed leaders, political collaborators, and labour aristocrats. Every genuine effort to reposition this Council has been met with repression. Yet we are not in despair. The struggle continues.
“Therefore, let the record reflect this truth: No pretentious May Day organized, engineered, and bankrolled by compradors can ever keep alive the glorious philosophy of May Day.”
Addressing the workers in the the State, the Caretaker Chairman noted that tomorrow’s celebration at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium is not true reflection of May Day, describing it as a hoax.
“Genuine labour leaders and true workers have resolved to stay indoors to mourn, in silence, the present travails of labour in our state. Let the public be rescued from this deception.
“Let it be known: tomorrow’s assembly is powered neither by the legitimate leadership of the NLC in Edo State, nor by the National Leadership of Congress. Those behind it are usurpers and hijackers of the Edo State Council of the NLC.
“History is our witness. Globally, governments and employers are not known to be the direct organizers of May Day. Yet here we are, confronted by a tense government circular dated April 22, 2026: mandating compulsory attendance for all civil and public servants; deploying state-funded buses to ferry workers from every corner of the state; and issuing veiled threats of sanction against defaulters. But civil and public servants are not the only workers. May Day belongs to all who labour.
“We do not reject government support for a successful May Day. But we must condemn, in the strongest terms, the open takeover of its organization. This is not assistance, it is interference. It is a violent intrusion into the affairs of the trade union movement in Edo State. It is the very undue meddling that this Caretaker Committee has sworn to defeat.
“Yes, over-politicization has brought the Edo NLC to its knees. But not beyond redemption. This Caretaker Committee, the legitimate leadership of the State Council, has been misrepresented, despite our unwavering commitment to permanently resolve this crisis. Tragically, the same actors who drove Edo NLC into a coma now hide beneath the cover of government, resisting every peaceful path to resolution.
“To the teeming workers of Edo State, we give this assurance: The illegitimate reign of labour aristocrats is a passing phase. Let us not grow weary. Let us pursue, by peaceful means, the return of the Edo NLC to its rightful custodians, to legitimate leaders, and to the mainstream of the labour movement in Nigeria.
“Despite today’s bitter taste of a counterfeit May Day, we call on all genuine workers and comrades: Unite. In the true spirit of comradeship, let us cast these reactionary forces aside. Let us forge a collective resistance against the hijack of labour by political warlords. Until this task is done, the glorious solidarity song of May Day cannot be sung in truth.
“NLacnlcnnNnEdo nnñÑLÇState resounds with pride in the annals of Nigeria’s labour movement. For this soil gave birth to the fearless, the rugged, the anti-imperialist, the very enigma of labour struggle in our nation: Pa Michael Imoudu. More than that, Edo State remains, to this day, a hotbed of labour and union activism in Nigeria. Why? Because this land has raised radicals. Anti-capitalist titans. Men of ideology, of principle, of uncompromising struggle. Extraordinary comrades. Illustrious sons of Edo: Festus Iyayi, Peter Ozo-Eson — both now of blessed memory. Edo State also stands tall by the record of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, who gave his all to the labour movement as President of the Nigeria Labour Congress. He fought. He bled. He led.
“But hear us, comrades: the legacy of these giants stands in stark opposition to the labour climate we witness in Edo State today. Let us speak truth: Pa Imoudu would not sanction it. Festus Iyayi would not recognize it. Peter Ozo-Eson would not sit in silence. They would not; they could not reckon with tomorrow’s gathering masquerading in the name of Workers’ Day. Their spirit rejects it. Their memory rebukes it.
“Therefore, we must be urgently guided by the enviable feats of our past labour heroes. We must return to the path they carved. We must do those things, and only those things that will restore our collective freedom and reclaim our independence as organized workers, and as trade unions in Edo State.
“The standard has been set. The ancestors have spoken. Shall we rise to their measure, or shall we betray their sacrifice?” Igbafen concluded.
