The leadership crisis in the Edo State Council of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has deepened, as the Caretaker Committee directed affiliate unions to boycott a sensitisation and familiarisation meeting organised by the state Ministry of Labour and Productivity.
The meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 23, 2026, at the John Odigie-Oyegun Public Service Academy (JOOPSA), Benin City, with proceedings expected to commence at 11:00 a.m.
In a statement dated September 18 and signed by its Chairman, Comrade Prof. Monday Lewis Igbafen, the caretaker committee said the leadership of the Edo NLC had not received any official invitation to the programme.
The committee consequently directed the NLC leadership, as well as chairmen and secretaries of its affiliate unions across the state, to stay away from the meeting.
According to Igbafen, the committee was informed of a purported invitation extended to organised labour, comprising the NLC and Trade Union Congress (TUC), but maintained that no formal invitation had been sent to the leadership it recognises.
“While the Caretaker Committee remains open to engagements of this nature, it must be emphasised that we cannot attend a meeting to which we were not invited,” Igbafen said.
He added that until the recognised leadership of the Edo NLC received an official invitation, the NLC leadership and its affiliate unions should “distance themselves from and boycott” the meeting.
The caretaker committee appealed to all affiliate unions to comply with the directive, stressing the importance of cooperation and solidarity among its members.
The development comes against the backdrop of an ongoing leadership dispute within the Edo State NLC, with the caretaker committee maintaining that it constitutes the legitimate leadership of the council.
The committee’s position is expected to further fuel the disagreement over the leadership of the state labour council and its relationship with the state government and Ministry of Labour and Productivity.
