A National Trustee of the National Union of Road Transport Workers Union (NURTW), Alhaji Abideen Olajide popularly called Ejiogbe on Wednesday blamed a former President of the Union, Alhaji Najimu Yasin as the brain behind the leadership crisis rocking the Union since year 2023.
Olajide Ejiogbe who doubles as the Oyo State Chairman of the NURTW, alleged Yasin of destroying the Union which once prodded him to the limelight and gave him means of livelihood alongside his headship of the Union as president and later Chairman, Board of Trustees.
Insisting that Alhaji Ibikunle Tajudeen Baruwa remained the authentic President of the Union having won the race for a second term of another four years, Olajide Ejiogbe said, “Alhaji Baruwa won the election and also won severally the law suits instituted against him” by those he referred to as the enemies of progress of the Union.
“Accordingly to our Union’s constitution, Alhaji Najimideen Yasin spent remainder of two years of Gidado regime and spent two terms of four years each making 10years altogether as President and yet, “still feels unfulfilled and hellbent on rubbishing his successor in the person of Alhaji Baruwa from enjoying his own terms as enshrined in the NURTW constitution.
“Baruwa is our president but Yasin is frustrating him because of the BoT chairmanship. He knew that once Baruwa completed two terms, he would become next BoT Chairman and Yasin would be asked to step down automatically.
“But he didn’t want that to happen and that’s why when Baruwa was sworn-in for second term in August last year, at the well attended inauguration held at Nasarawa State, his arch-rival Agbede went to court yet lost gallantly.
“They conveyed meeting of retired past leaders in the zone and made Alhaji Musliudeen Akinsanya (a.k.a. MC Oluomo) president of the Union contrary to the rule and the procedures in the Union when a sitting president won through popular votes and consent of all members with courts validating his headship of the Union till date.
“They are trying to rubbish the nation’s judiciary and what they did in Osogbo amounted to the contempt of the court which validated the presidency of Alhaji Baruwa.
“You, journalists should ask Musiliu Akinsanya popularly called MC Oluomo to name the four states out of the six Southwestern states that he claimed supported him. If he says Ekiti; Lagos; Ogun and Ondo states, then he missed it because Yaro in Ogun state chapter and Falope of Ekiti State chapter had both voted Baruwa in 2023 May 24, 2023, and that election is still standing till date in the face of the Law as upheld by courts of higher jurisdictions including the National Industrial Court.
“MC Oluomo has no locus standi to claim Presidency of our Union. To buttress our facts that Yasin was behind the crisis, he surreptitiously used his son, Teslim Usman Yasin, Secretary of the Lagos chapter to send letters for the meeting where MC purportedly emerged.
“Who presided over it? Who is the General Secretary there? Falope claimed that he was the only functional chairman when Baruwa was elected was a nonsense talk because the NURTW in Oyo state is existing administratively and our dues are being paid to the national level monthly.
“All the Elected Officers in the State pay our monthly due despite that we are not working and we have the rights under the law to function accordingly.
“We urge the Federal Government and security agencies to allow Baruwa function as our President. MC Oluomo is an impostor and not our member because he is a park and garages member and not NURTW member any longer,” Olajide Ejiogbe added.
On Monday, human rights lawyer, Mr Femi Falana in a statement to the media advised the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi SAN and the Inspector-General of Police, Dr. Kayode Egbetokun to ensure that Comrade Baruwa is restored as national president of NURTW without further delay.
His words: “On August 28, 2023, a gang of armed thugs invaded the National Secretariat of the National Union of Road Transport Workers at Abuja. One of the security men guarding the said Secretariat was killed by the armed invaders.
“At the end of the violent invasion, the Secretariat was seized while the elected President, Comrade Tajudeen Baruwa and members of his Executive were arrested and charged with murder before a Magistrate Court in the Federal Capital Territory. However, the charge of murder was withdrawn and struck out after the successful but illegal seizure of the Secretariat!
“As a law abiding citizen, Comrade Baruwa approached the National Industrial Court for legal redress. In a judgment delivered on March 11, 2024, the Court confirmed Comrade Baruwa and members of his Executive as the elected leaders of the NURTW.
“Dissatisfied with the judgment, the opponents of Comrade Baruwa appealed to the Court of Appeal. On November 8, 2024, the Court of Appeal delivered its judgment. The Justices of the Court dismissed the appeal and confirmed the judgment of the National Industrial Court which had recognised Comrade Baruwa as the President of the NURTW.
“In view of the foregoing, we call on the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi SAN and the Inspector-General of Police, Dr. Kayode Egbetokun to ensure that Comrade Baruwa is restored to his office in strict compliance with the judgments of the National Industrial Court and the Court of Appeal”.
