16082018 - Uproar as EFCC seeks minutes of Benue's security meetings

24 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, AUGUST 16, 2018
NECA assures of decent jobs as it sets up body for
enhanced global competitiveness in business
Stories by Victor Ahiuma-
Young
THE issue of decent work has
become part of global industrial
relations practice.
Few days ago, when the Nigeria
Employers' Consultative Association,
NECA, announced the
successful accreditation of
NECA, Global Certification Limited,
NGCL, an indigenous global
certification body to enhance
global competitiveness, NECA
also assured of decent work in its
operations.
Announcing the birth of NGCL
at a briefing in Lagos, NECA Director-General
designate, Mr.
Timothy Olawale, said NGCL
had been internationally accredited
as the first indigenous certification
body in Nigeria to provide
certification and training services
for companies locally and
internationally.
He informed that NGCL certification
was achieved in collaboration
with the United Nations Industrial
Development Organisation,
UNIDO.
According to him, NGCL had
successfully gone through the
process of international accreditation
and set to add value to the
*From the Left: Mr. Rotimi Olaoluwa - representing UNIDO Chief Technical Adviser; Mrs. Titilayo
Eko, representing the President, NECA's Network of Entrepreneurial Women, NNEW; Mr. Timothy
Olawale, Chairman, NECA's Global Certification Limited; Mrs. Celine Oni, CEO, NECA's Global
Certification Limited.
Federal Government-approved
National Quality Infrastructure
Project, NQIP, launched in 2014.
He informed that before now,
Nigerian companies seeking international
certification would do
so outside Africa or Egypt
through the Egyptian Accreditation
Council, EGAC, a recognised
How workers' action humbled Ikeja DISCO
SINCE the takeover of the
generation and distribution
of power supply in November
2013 by the private individuals
otherwise known as
generation companies,
GENCOs and Distribution
companies, DISCOs, some of
them have been having running
battles with Organised
Labour over right to freedom
of association, conditions of
service, and other unfair Labour
practices including perceived
indiscriminate layoffs.
In the last five years, electricity
workers led by the National
Union of Electricity Employees,
NUEE, have confronted
some of them more
than once to compel them to
conform to international best
practices and extant Labour
Laws.
For Ikeja Electricity, I.E, or
Ikeja DISCO, between 2016
and 2018, NUEE and its ally
unions, have assaulted the
firm over alleged unfair Labour
practices.
The latest one which resulted
to the picketing of its head office
and crippling of its activities
for about three days recently
may not be the last if
the terms of agreement
reached by the management of
IE and leaders of NUEE are
not adhered to.
Terms of agreement
Following the latest Labour
action between August 8 and
10, at a meeting of both parties
at the instance of the management,
10 point agreement
including that “management
would reconvene the committee
on conditions of service on
Wednesday, August 15, 2018(
yesterday).The two parties are
to make concerted effort to
conclude discussion on the
document one month from the
date of this meeting; in case
of the sacked 233 staff in 2016
: Ikeja Electric Management
agreed to conclude the review
of their case within 2 weeks
from today; in the case of
sacked 5 and 41 in 2017 and
2018 respectively, it was
agreed that Ikeja Electric will
confirm the position of the
union from the Federal Ministry
of Labour on its intervention
and take appropriate action
aimed at reviewing the
cases accordingly.
“Transfer of Lagos State
chairman, NUEE: management
agreed to review the
issue. This is based on the
understanding of the two parties
on the Procedural Agreement.
Ikeja Electric promised
to promote high safety standard
always. Notwithstanding
any court case, the management/union
agreed that it
shall continue to engage towards
resolving all matters
amicably.
“Union observed that management
officials interfacing
member of International Accreditation
Federation, IAF.
Olawale said: "But with NGCL,
Nigerian companies can secure
their accreditation locally. NGCL
has been internationally accredited
as the first indigenous certification
body to provide certification
training services for companies
locally and internationally."
The Director-General designate
listed some of the benefits of the
accreditation of NGCL to include
"Continual improvement of business
management systems processes,
Business growth through
between the two parties were
responsible for breakdown of
communication which has led
to the picketing. However,
both management and union
agreed to work towards having
harmonious understanding
and working relationship
between the parties henceforth.
The parties agreed that
no staff will be penalised or
victimised arising from his participation
in the picketing action.
The meeting agreed to
reconvene at the end of 2
weeks for a holistic review of
the above issues and move the
relationship forward.”
Employers decry impact of Port congestion,
say businesses bleeding
ORGANISED Private Sec
tor, OPS, has expressed
concern at the adverse effect
of the national menace of port
congestion and perpetual
blockade of roads leading to
the Apapa Ports on businesses
in Nigeria.
Speaking through the Director
General of Nigeria Employers’
Consultative Association,
NECA, Mr. Olusegun Oshinowo,
in a statement , lamented
the colossal loss incurred by
companies involved in the importation
of sensitive raw materials
and finished products,
including pharmaceuticals
materials.
According to him, “clearing
these goods from the ports has
become a herculean task.
Where these goods and raw
materials are finally retrieved,
they may have to be destroyed
due to quality challenges related
to temperature issues,
having overstayed beyond safe
period in the ports”.
Mr Oshinowo explained further
that “to compound the already
bad situation, there is
the heavy demurrage that is
being incurred as a result of
the congestion and delays,
which is neither the fault of the
companies nor within their
control.
He noted that demurrage on
20 feet and 40 feet containers
are N60, 000 and N90, 000 per
day respectively. Where the
container stays from June and
only released in mid-August,
it would have accrued a demurrage
of N6.84m in one 40 ft
container alone. This is
apart from the increased
freight costs from transporters
due to the significant down
time of haulage trucks caused
by the congestion”.
According to him, “this accounts
for the rising cases of
abandoned containers and
imports at the ports”.
While commending the ongoing
efforts by Government
to clear the Apapa ports of congestions,
NECA urged that
urgent steps be taken to stem
the dire economic hardships
that companies are going
through in using the ports.
Mr. Oshinowo called on the
Federal Government to direct
the Customs Service to exercise
100% waiver of the massive
demurrage incurred by
Companies due to the congestion
and delays. This according
to him will put action to
Government’s avowed commitment
to improving ease of
doing business in the country.
improved productivity and profitability,
Assurance and confidence
in the quality of goods and
services further to certification by
an accredited third party organisation,
Marketability of goods
and services, Compliance with
statutory and regulatory authorities."
While stressing that "NGCL is
poised to promote quality, remove
technical barriers to trade and
advance economic growth
through Certification and Training,"
Mr Olawale added: "We assure
all stakeholders and organised
businesses that we will champion
quality through Certification
and Training on ISO 9001: 2015
QMS and other Standards. We
thank the EU and UNIDO as this
is a step towards enhancing NE-
CA's role in enterprise growth and
furthering our age-long practice
of encouraging excellence, promotion
of decent work and global
best practice."
UNIDO speaks
Contributing, UNIDO's Technical
Adviser, Mr Shaukat Hussain,
said the international body was
interested in better standards of
Nigerian companies and products.
Represented by Mr Rotimi Olaoluwa,
Lead Consultant, ISO
9001: 2015, Hussain noted that
the project would be a robust business
strategy to boost investment.
Similarly, Chief Executive Officer
of NGCL, Mrs Celine Oni,
said businesses needed to align
with emerging trends in global
marketplace. She pointed out that
the implementation of the ISO
standards in business had
brought about improved efficiency
and effectiveness of processes
as well as adherence to regulatory
and statutory requirements.
NUTGTWN
holds 40th
anniversary in
October
NATIONAL Union of Tex
tile, Garment and Tailoring
Workers of Nigeria,
NUTGTWN , has released activities
lined up to mark its 40th
anniversary.
Announcing the activities, at
the unveiling of the 40th Anniversary
Logo of Textile Union,
President of NUTGTWN,
Comrade John Adaji informed
that the 40th anniversary
of the Union would
hold from Tuesday 16th to
Thursday 18th October 2018.
Activities include Anniversary
Rallies, Lectures, Exhibitions,
fashion parade and gala
nite/Anniversary Awards in
major textile cities of Kano,
Kaduna and Lagos.
He added that NUTGWN is
one of the registered 29 industrial
unions, which came into
existence after the amalgamation
of scores of house unions
in 1978.