The Osun State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) has urged its members to disregard a directive by a breakaway group calling for resumption of work across council areas in the state.
The union’s president, Dr. Nathaniel Ogungbangbe, issued the instruction following an announcement by a faction identified as the Association of Concerned Local Government Staff, which had ordered local government workers to immediately return to their duty posts.
Tribune Online reports that local government workers in the state have been off duty since February 17, 2025, following the directive of the state’s chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
Addressing journalists in Osogbo on Saturday, the state coordinator of the breakaway association, Adedayo Adekunle, described the closure of council secretariats as illegal and accused Ogungbangbe of manipulating his way to a second term in office.
“Despite his claim that Local Government Service is no longer safe for staff to work, he opened Local Governments for the purpose of conducting his second term election where he succeeded in manipulating himself to win second term,” Adekunle said.
“No life was lost during the elections. No person was arrested and social parties were held during the day and nights to celebrate the success. Yet, all Maternity Centers were locked against women and children and they were and are still sentenced to death by the reckless shut down of the Local Government Service in Osun State by this desperate politician in the garb of a unionist,” he added.
In his response, Ogungbangbe dismissed the group as illegal and alleged that they were being sponsored by political interests to sow discord among workers.
He linked the ongoing tension to the return of chairmen and councillors elected in the October 15, 2022 local government elections, who resumed duty to enforce a judgment secured at the Court of Appeal in Akure, amid resistance from the state government.
“All primary healthcare centres in the state are working. They are not shot down as Adedayo claimed. We didn’t use local government secretariats for NULGE elections. We used a designated place for it. Arrangements for the election had been long concluded before crises started that forced us to direct our members to stay at home. You can see the man told lies upon lies against me,” Ogungbangbe said.
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He further stated that Adedayo had contested and lost the union’s presidential seat during the last state election, dismissing his allegations as baseless.
“Let me tell you that workers cannot return back to work because it is not their group that said workers should stay at home. Workers staying at home for reasons. Imagine if workers of the local government were on duty on the day when six people died due to the crisis that happened at the councils. So, if I said my members should stay at home because I do not want to endanger the life of anybody, have I gone wrong in any way?” he queried.
Ogungbangbe also challenged the legitimacy of the faction, insisting that it has no legal standing.
He said, “There is no union called Concerned LG workers in Osun State. They should tender their certificate of incorporation. The Nigeria Labour Congress is aware of NULGE’s position. Also, the national body of our union is aware, and they have even written a letter to Osun telling the government that they are in support of our decision.”
“So, if anybody is now coming up to say another thing, they must have been paid to do what they are doing. No member of the local government in Osun State will follow this useless instruction because they are not registered. They also lied that I single-handedly supervised the closure of health facilities in the state.These are all lies. Health workers are on duty. Maternity and health facilities in every local government are working,” he added.
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