Osun APC Warns NLC Against Planned Strike, UBA Branch Picketing

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has warned the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) against embarking on a planned three-day sympathy strike and picketing of United Bank for Africa (UBA) branches over the lingering dispute surrounding local government allocations in the state.

The party also called on the Osun State Police Command and other security agencies to remain vigilant and prevent a breakdown of law and order during the proposed industrial action.

The APC’s Director of Media and Information, Kola Olabisi, stated the party’s position in a press release issued on Tuesday in response to a communique by the Osun NLC chapter, led by its chairman, Christopher Arapasopo.

The union announced plans to commence a three-day sympathy strike on Sunday, November 8, and continue until midnight on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. It also scheduled peaceful picketing of UBA branches across Osun State from Thursday, November 12, with reported support from the National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) and councils in the South-West.

However, the APC described the proposed industrial action and picketing as illegal, arguing that disagreements over local government allocations should be resolved through appropriate legal and administrative channels.

“We consider it a criminal act for the state NLC to contemplate the threat of industrial action and picketing against UBA, as such is counterproductive because legal and administrative disagreements should ideally be addressed through appropriate institutional channels,” the party stated.

The party acknowledged the responsibility of organised labour to protect workers’ salaries, pensions and allowances but argued that the interests of reinstated elected APC chairmen and councillors should also be respected.

It urged the NLC to remain impartial in the dispute and avoid allowing partisan political considerations to influence its position on local government administration and autonomy. The APC maintained that allocations from the Federation Account belong to the respective local government areas in line with the Supreme Court judgment on local government autonomy.

The party also questioned the justification for the proposed strike, claiming that the union had not reported cases of unpaid or delayed salaries, pensions, allowances or other workers’ entitlements. It further alleged that the planned action was politically motivated and intended to influence public perception of those currently occupying local government offices.

The APC called on security agencies to monitor the planned activities and warned that anyone found responsible for disrupting public order should be arrested and prosecuted in accordance with the law. It also appealed to the NLC national secretariat to intervene and persuade its Osun chapter to reconsider the action, stressing the need to prioritise workers’ welfare and respect for the rule of law.