The Osun State All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned Governor Ademola Adeleke for his recent order suspending all National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) operations throughout the state. Kola Olabisi, the party’s spokesperson, stated that the governor lacks the legal authority to enact such a ban, calling the move a violation of the constitution.
The controversy stems from an order Adeleke gave to security forces to halt union activities and detain anyone acting as a union official. This followed the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria’s (ALGON) previous attempt to set up a caretaker committee to manage a leadership dispute within the transport sector. The APC argues that the governor’s intervention interferes with a legally registered entity and disregards the right to freedom of association protected by Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution.
To support their position, the APC referenced a Court of Appeal ruling concerning the Oyo State government, which previously declared that suspending union operations is unlawful. The party insisted that individual misconduct should be handled through the judicial system rather than through executive orders that overstep legal boundaries. They have called on the governor to retract the directive immediately, warning that the move would likely fail if challenged in court.
