metro

Uber, Bolt drivers form union, get FG’s approval

Published

1 year ago

January 25, 2023

Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige

The Federal Government on Tuesday presented a letter of approval of registration to an informal sector trade union, the Amalgamated Union of App-Based Transport Workers of Nigeria, AUATWON.

This came after the drivers of e-hailing services in Nigeria have officially unionised and sought the recognition of the government.

A statement by the Head, Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Olajide Oshundun, said the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige made the presentation at a ceremony in his office.

The membership of the new union comprises all app-based transport workers, online transport services, and e-hailing drivers and operators in Nigeria.

Making remarks before the presentation, Ngige described the registration of the new union as a milestone in labour administration, particularly in the trade union services segment, adding that it marks a continued global journey to formalise the informal sector, which constitutes the larger population in the world of work.

The Minister noted that prior to now, the informal sector had been unmanageable, owing to a lack of an identifiable structural framework to harmonise and demarcate its diverse sectors.

READ ALSO:

Ngige said, “hitherto, we gave recognition and certification to workers in the formal sector, including the private sector, such as banks, oil and gas, insurance, among other technical areas, and the public sector workers in the unions of pensioners, teachers and recently, the two newly registered university-based unions, the Congress for University Academics (CONUA) and the National Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA).

“Today, we are breaking new ground with those in the informal sector who are employing themselves and from there, employing others. The promoters of AUTWON applied for registration as a trade union on April 27, 2021, to cater for self-employed persons in the field of IT-based transportation services.

“We considered necessary factors and perimeters, especially the global movement, which is sponsored mostly by the International Labour Organisation, ILO, to formalise the informal sector that has most of the working population in the world of work, characterised and independent owned-account workers.

“In our case today, we have a hybrid of the forgone in the informal economy who own and operate economic units which may also further include employers, and members of cooperatives and of social and solidarity economy units.”

Ngige said they also considered the changing world of work oiled by technology transformation as contained in the Centenary Declaration of the ILO in 2019, especially the need to ensure that such transformative changes were human-driven.

He said in view of these considerations, his ministry decided to register AUATWON to enable the organisation of the new but growing segment of the informal economy.

Besides the creation of jobs, he said the registration of the union, would enable the government to monitor the security component of transportation systems in Nigeria

“We are also backed by an international position on the unionisation of workers who are self-employed. The need to ensure that such workers enjoy trade union rights for the purpose of furthering and defending their interest, which includes collective bargaining, has often been emphasised in different fora, concerning the world of work.

READ ALSO:

“But for the self-employed, it is a different kind of collective bargaining, tailored to suit the peculiarities of the self-employed segment of workers, and the collective bargaining mechanism may transverse international shores of Nigeria, as such apps are usually foreign-owned and operated.”

In this regard, he urged the union to observe the provisions of Section 3 of the Trade Disputes Act, CAP.T8, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (LFN), 2004, which demands that they should deposition copies of Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) with the Honourable Minister of Labour and Employment.

He charged them to also discharge their obligations under the Trade Unions Act, CAP T14, LFN, 2004, such as the rendition of annual returns to the Registrar of Trade Unions.

“The office of the Registrar of Trade Union (RTU) will gazette your organisation in consonance with Sections 5(2) and (3) of the Trade Unions Act, and 90 days will be given for those who want to object to your existence. We will look at each petition on its merit and the RTU will write a recommendation. Afterwards, we will invite you to give you the certificate of registration to operate as a full-fledged trade union.”

metro

47 Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists surrender

Published

5 mins ago

May 17, 2024

Trends Admin

47 Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists surrender

In a significant development in the fight against terrorism, 47 individuals linked with Boko Haram and the Islamic State’s West Africa Province (ISWAP) have voluntarily surrendered to troops of the 403 Amphibious Brigade of Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) Sector 3, Nigeria, on May 15, 2024.

The surrender took place at Kwatan Turare and Doron Baga, Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State.

Newstrends reports that scores of Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists have surrendered to the military in recent months.

Among those who surrendered on Wednesday was Mallam Muazu Adamu, a notable fighter affiliated with the Jama’at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da’wah wa’l-Jihad (JAS) faction, operating under Commander Alai Gana.

READ ALSO:

According to a statement by Chief Military Public Information Officer of MJTF, N’djamena, Chad, Lieutenant Colonel Abubakar Abdullahi, Mallam Muazu Adamu, along with his wife, chose to lay down their arms and renounce violence.

According to initial investigations, these individuals escaped from Sharama, located in the Lake Chad Islands.

They revealed that they had been engaged in farming activities before deciding to abandon the terrorist groups.

Upon surrender, they were found with personal belongings such as clothes, blankets, mats, pots, and plates.

The surrendered individuals are currently in custody, undergoing further interrogation to gather more information about their activities and affiliations, the e MNJTF said even as it vowed to leave no stone unturned to maintaining peace and security in the Lake Chad basin region and beyond.

47 Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists surrender

metro

Death toll in Kano mosque explosion rises to 11

Published

20 mins ago

May 17, 2024

Trends Admin

Death toll in Kano mosque explosion rises to 11

The Kano State Police Command, on Thursday, said 11 persons have died following Wednesday’s bombing incident at a mosque in Gadan Village, Gezawa Local Government Area of the state.

The police spokesman in Kano, Abdullahi Haruna, confirmed this to our correspondent.

Haruna said three more of the victims died on Wednesday, raising the figure to 11 from the eight casualties recorded on Wednesday.

The police had on Wednesday said they arrested a 38-year-old man, Shafi’u Abubakar, who bombed a mosque Gadan Village.

“The suspect is Shafi’u Abubakar, aged 38, who said his action was purely in hostility, following a prolonged family disagreement over sharing of inheritance of which those that he alleged to have cheated on him were in the mosque at that moment and he did that for his voice to be heard,” the police spokesman said.

The Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Zone 1, Umar Sanda, confirmed the incident when a delegation of security personnel visited the victims at Murtala Muhammad Specialist Hospital.

“What happened is not associated with any act of terrorism, rather it was a skirmish that arose as a result of inheritance distribution.

READ ALSO:

“The suspect was said not to be satisfied with the distribution and was reacting to that. He is presently with us and is giving out useful information.

“Out of the 24 that were admitted here, one is dead. It is really unfortunate. He used a locally-made bomb to commit the crime,” he said.

The earlier statement by the PPRO read, “Today, 15/05/2024, at about 0520hrs, reports were received that there was an explosion at a mosque in Gadan Village, Gezawa LGA, Kano State, during ‘Subhi Prayer’ and that some people got injured.

“On receipt of the report, the Commissioner of Police, Kano State Command, CP Mohammed Usaini Gumel, immediately deployed the command’s combined teams consisting of experts in Explosive Ordnance Disposal-Chemical Biological, Radiological and Nuclear led by CSP Haruna Isma’il and other crime-scene policemen, led by the Divisional Police Officer, Gezawa Division, Haruna Iliya.

“The scene was cordoned off and 24 victims, including 20 male adults and four male children, were removed and rushed to Murtala Mohammed Specialist Hospital, Kano, where they are currently receiving treatment.”

According to eyewitness accounts, shortly after pouring fuel inside the mosque, Aminu locked the doors, thereby trapping worshippers inside, before setting off the bomb.

READ ALSO:

One of the injured victims,,Sadik Kamal, who spoke to The PUNCH, said when the flames engulfed the mosque, he desperately attempted to escape but found the exit doors securely locked.

“It was the latecomers who struggled to open the locked doors to make good the escape of those trapped to safety,” Kamal said.

According to him, Aminu has a history of violent behaviour in the village, adding that he had earlier brandished a machete, threatening fellow villagers.

Kamal said authorities had once arrested and sent Aminu to a psychiatric hospital for mental health evaluation.

“His latest action, bordering on arson is not an isolated incident,” Kamal said, noting that the suspect had previously not only set ablaze his brother’s car but also attacked him with a cutlass.

Zabiya Ibrahim, whose three uncles were among the victims, called for justice, alleging that Aminu’s actions were deliberate and not due to mental illness.

“He knows how to make money,” she said, recalling that he was involved in riding a popular local tricycle known as ‘Adai-Adai ta Sahu’ to make ends meet.

To this end, Ibrahim urged the government to ensure that Aminu was held responsible for his actions to serve as a deterrent to would-be culprits.

Death toll in Kano mosque explosion rises to 11

metro

My husband sold our TV to gamble, woman tells court

Published

14 hours ago

May 16, 2024

Trends Admin

My husband sold our TV to gamble, woman tells court

A housewife, Muinat Ibrahim, on Thursday, filed for divorce in an Area Court in Ilorin on grounds that her husband, Jamiu Abdulmumini sold their television set and other valuables to gamble.

The petitioner told the court that she discovered her husband’s addiction to gambling immediately after their wedding and had tried her best to stop making him stop.

“My husband sold our television set, fridge, and my two Android phones to gamble.

“He also lost two commercial motorcycles and spent my school fees on gambling.

READ ALSO:

“I moved out of his house but returned after he promised to stop. He never stopped,” she said.

Ibrahim told the court that her husband moved out of their house to live with his parents when he could no longer get money from her.

The respondent, however, told the court that he was sorry and promised to change.

“I promise to stop gambling. Please give me another chance to make amends.

The presiding Judge, Hammad Ajumonbi, advised the respondent to stop gambling.

“If you continue gambling, you might lose everything you worked for, he said.

Ajumonbi, however, granted the plea of the respondent and gave him one week to change his behavior.

He also asked him to pay back the money he owed his wife and be a responsible husband.

He adjourned the case until May 23, for report of settlement.