NSITF board chair: NLC, NUPENG against Kokori’s substitution

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has challenged the replacement of Mr Frank Kokori as new chairman of the Board of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF). Mr Ayuba Wabba, NLC president, spoke last week at the Ministry of Labour and Employment Abuja, when the inauguration of the board failed to hold because of absence […]

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has challenged the replacement of Mr Frank Kokori as new chairman of the Board of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF).

Mr Ayuba Wabba, NLC president, spoke last week at the Ministry of Labour and Employment Abuja, when the inauguration of the board failed to hold because of absence of the minister, Sen. Chris Ngige.

Wabba said the union had reasons to believe there was foul play in the substitution of members of the board.

He alleged that President Muhammadu Buhari had appointed Frank Kokori as the Chairman of the NSITF Board but that the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige changed the appointment.

“Kokori has not been informed that there is a new chairman of the board. The minister had earlier informed him that Mr President had appointed him as the chairman of the board and he had undergone all necessary security screening. But, three years since, they have refused to inaugurate the board due to one reason or the other and we can see today that they do not want somebody that is transparent to manage workers’ money for no just reason,” he said.

Wabba said it was wrong for the minister to run the NSITF board as a sole administrator because the money was contributed by employers for the social security cover for their employees.

“Enough of one person administrator to manage our money and our resources because public office is public trust; let us not allow a situation where people will continue to feast on our resource and claim that they are actually fighting corruption.

“Corruption means that we can also interrogate the sole administrator that has been managing our money; that is why we are here to protest the injustice where people have been feasting on our money for three years and they do not want the board to be inaugurated,” he said.

“We want transparency and good governance. It is our money, we cannot sweep issues under the carpet; it is workers money and their social security, and we need to protect that money. We will be on standby until the ministers does the needful,” he said.

Mr Ajibola Ibrahim, the Director, Human Resources in the Ministry of Labour and Employment said the minister was unavoidably absent because some members to be inaugurated were not on ground, thereby leading to rescheduling of the inauguration to a later date.

Mr Williams Apkoreha, President, Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), said that the union would resist any attempt by the minister to secretly inaugurate the board.

He said the union would mobilise Nigerian workers to resist the inauguration of the board if the minister failed to openly inaugurate the board that Mr President had approved.

William also noted that the union will hold its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting after the Easter break deliberate on the issues and take on any resolution from the meeting.