Comrade Adewale Adeyanju is the Deputy President of Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and President General, Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN). In this interview with PAUL OGBUOKIRI, he says that the union would not relent in its efforts at ensuring that its members are accorded high human regards by those who engage them for work. He adds that the union demands that its members be exposed to opportunities for regular and relevant training to equip them well to be competitive among workers in similar jobs around the world. Excerpts

How well have the negotiations you have been doing been able to push, strengthen and sustain the issue of welfare of maritime workers, particularly your members?
Well, I think the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria today has transformed, unlike it was before; when the dockworkers, the seafarers, the shipping and that of NPA didn’t have what we called Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). But under our watch, we are improving upon what we met on ground when I took over. The issue of CBA should be paramount in the mind of any leader. We started with the dockworkers where we have the National Joint Industrial Council (NJIC), and from that they have what we call the CBA, between the terminal operators, the Nigerian Ports Authority and NIMASA, being witnessed by other stakeholders in the NJIC.
So, welfare should be the best thing you need to think of to promote and to improve the condition of your members. I think that is what we have done recently. If you see how the port is very calm today, it has to do with the ‘dos and don’ts’ coming from the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria and its Excos. You know that I have four branches; the Dockworkers, the Nigerian Ports Authority, the Seafarers and that of Shipping. But we still have a little challenge with Shipping, when we found out that their take-home is nothing to write home about; somebody will put in 30-35 years’ service, if the person is leaving tomorrow, it is like a death-sentence to the person. So, we are trying to see how we can come in to improve on that. But, as regards that of the dockworkers, the CBA is reviewed every two years, which I think has helped and improved the welfare of the dockworker across the board. So, the issues we have with the Shipping, very soon we are going to get to the root of the whole matter. I am not interested in all the excuses the Shipping Companies are giving; all I want them to do is to improve the welfare of the workers under them.
Then the dockworkers, we are still doing something to make sure that their welfare continues to improve more than the way we met.

You said the CBA is meant to be reviewed every two years, but I understand that it is over two years now that the emoluments of dockworkers were last reviewed. Have you taken note of that?
Well, on the issue of CBA for dockworkers, I think by next week, we are sending our new proposal to stakeholders on the minimum standards and others. You are right on the review every two years and it has elapsed since last year. We would try to see how we can redirect and represent the CBA for dockworkers where the old book will be reviewed. If I’m retiring, you are giving me a death sentence gratuity. We are looking at how we can accommodate what we have in the scheme, a revolving scheme that is going to benefit the dockworkers where you pay your own demand apart from your pensions, apart from your gratuity. This is because we have that standard in other parts of the world. So, we want to make sure that you put it in a uniform position where that scheme can be revolved between the workers and the employers. So, I think that is what delayed it. But now, we’ve already put a finishing touch on that and by Monday next week, we’re going to send it to stakeholders so that we can commence the discussion on the CBA.

What is the update on the issue of the agreement with the International Oil Companies (IOCs)?
The Nigeria Port Authority is in a better position to tell the whole world where we are on this issue of IOC. You remember we signed an agreement with them, and that agreement has already elapsed. We expected them to publish all the names of those who have complied with the Stevedoring Contractors, or allowed them to be in their terminals. So, I think what the President of the stevedoring contractors said is correct. It’s just for the union now to wake up again and start disturbing them about this. Because we told them and the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority assured us that at least 60 or 70 per cent of them have complied. Okay, give us the names of those who have complied, and allow the stevedoring contractors to work in their formations. So, the way it is now, it’s like a coded compliance. That’s the way I’m going to say it for now, it’s coded. So, there’s no way we’re going to continue using that language that, yes, they have complied. To us, as an organised labour union, we feel we have been cheated on these issues, because they have not carried us along and we don’t even know who and who have allowed the workers through the stevedoring contractors to be engaged in the terminals.

You are the deputy president of Nigerian Labour Congress and you recently emerged as the Chairman of Industrial Training Fund (ITF) Africa and also Vice President, ITF Global. These are significant positions you are occupying. What does your elevation in the leadership of the Nigerian and global labour community mean for the Nigerian maritime worker? How can you use these positions to better the lots of an average maritime worker in this country?
Well, you know ITF and you know what they stand for. They stand for welfarism. They stand for the true position of the union and that of their affiliates that we belong to. The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria has been an affiliate of ITF for almost 30 years. It was Chief Ogunleye and Late Abba, the then President of Dockworkers at that time, that brought ITF to this country. So, we’ve been a member of ITF. So, my elected position is not new to me, because I’ve been a member of a Fair Practice Committee for more than 15 years or thereabout and I know how it works. So, it is to expand the scope of Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria and the stakeholders in particular. Because it has to do with port-related operations that involve Nigerian Port Authority, the shipping, the seafarers and that of the dock workers. So, we have dock workers in ITF, we also have seafarers, we equally have shipping and that of the ports. So, it’s going to make sure that we are being treated right and it is going to be a plus for us as Africans.

How is the current scarcity and increase of the pump price of petrol affecting port workers?
Before his illegal arrest, the NLC President and even the TUC President, called on the government to revert to the old price.
The perennial fuel scarcity, the arbitrary pump price increase and the devaluation of the Naira are challenges affecting not only the dockworkers, but it is also affecting all the stakeholders and all Nigerian workers, Diesel is now very expensive, I want to sympathise with the terminal operators in the maritime industry, I wonder how they are managing to buy diesel to run their businesses.
I believe myself and the new executives of NLC would not fold our hands and allow Nigerians to die in silence.

The access road to the Lagos ports has been improved. What is your take on the good development?
I think that is the prayer of every stakeholder. Now from my house to work is just 10 to15 minutes’ drive unlike before, which used to be about two to three hours. So, we need to thank the management of Nigerian Ports Authority and the Lagos State Governor for making this possible. This is because he took the matter by himself, and that is why all of us can smile home. There won’t be any stress or whatever. So, you don’t expect the union to start making noise about it again. What we have been asking them to do for almost four to five years now. They did it in less than 30 minutes or one hour. So, tell me, where are those trucks now? That is the question we need to ask ourselves. Where are those trucks? Because if you don’t have any business on the road, why must you bring in your trucks to cause obstruction for other stakeholders? So, we thank Nigeria Ports Authority and our appreciation goes to the Lagos State Governor, who took it upon himself to ensure that there is sanity on this road where mechanics, vulcanizers and whatever have taken over the road. But now, it’s no longer like that. They are no longer there. What they equally did was to remove all those shanties from the road where they erected two- and three-bedroom flats like I used to say. They are no longer there. Hardly will you see any woman lurking around that place. But I want them to sustain it. We want the government to sustain it.