Posted by By YINKA FABOWALE on
Radical lawyer, Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN), has expressed misgivings over organised labour's aloofness in the raging controversy over the speculated bid of President Obasanjo to have at least another term in office.
Radical lawyer, Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN), has expressed misgivings over organised labour's aloofness in the raging controversy over the speculated bid of President Obasanjo to have at least another term in office.
Fawehinmi, in a four-page statement on Sunday, noted that they fundamental voice of labour, particularly its leader, Adams Oshimole, has been lacking in the outrage against the unpopular agenda, stressing that labour and its leaders cannot justify their silence in the midst of a deafening controversy over an issue that can break up the country."
The senior advocate reminded labour, "When elections were in held in 2003, no political party in Nigeria made the amendment of the constitution or specifically the elongation of the tenure of Mr President an election issue. Consequently, the electorates were not consulted and voters did not have opportunity to bare their minds through the ballot box on such fundamental issue."
Also he noted that the issue of the elongation of the tenure of Mr President has not been subjected to any referendum with a view to knowing the stand of the Nigerian people through a due political process.
He said the president has an obligation to honour the oath he swore on May 29, 1999 and May 29, 2003 to defend and preserve the constitution whose provisions included section 137 subsection (1) (b) which prescribes only two-term of four years each as tenure of the President and section 14 on federal character which said no particular ethnic group should dominate.
"That oath expires on the 29th of May, 2007. It is therefore unconstitutional, immoral, indecent and ungodly for the President to attempt to extend his tenure before the expiration of the two-term tenure on the 29th of May, 2007.
"I am appealing to Labour leaders, particularly Adams Oshiomole of the Nigeria Labor Congress (NLC), and Dr (Mrs) Nkiru Obiajulu of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to break their disturbing silence and back the people of Nigeria against the third term agenda which may break the country," the lawyer said, adding that it was an obligation they owed their teeming members.