Pensioners from federal parastatals have disassociated themselves from a purported move for the registration and membership of a parallel pensioners union known as Federal Parastatals and Private Sector Association of Nigeria (FEPPPAN).
The pensioners in a communiqué issued at the end of its meeting in Abuja yesterday said they remain under the umbrella of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) which is the umbrella body of all pensioners in Nigeria. The communiqué was signed by the chairman of the communiqué drafting committee, Comrade Emeka Njoku, as well as secretary, Comrade Dele A. Samuel.
It would be recalled that FEPPPAN had recently demanded immediate registration from the Labour minister, claiming that the court has dismissed the suit instituted against its registration by the NUP. The pensioners urged the Ministry of Labour and Employment to be wary of all correspondences from the group. The communiqué reads in part:
“We call on PTAD and all other Pension Related Agencies nationwide to ignore any directive and correspondence from FEPPPAN to stop deduction of check-off dues from pensioners.
‘‘We implore the Honorable Minister of Labour and Registrar of Trade Unions to be guided by the Trade Union Acts CAP T.14 that says ‘No combination of workers or employees shall be registered as a trade union save with the approval of the Minister on his being satisfied that it is expedient to register the union either by regrouping existing trade unions, registering a new trade union or otherwise.
‘‘However, no trade union shall be registered to represent workers or employers in a place where there already exists a trade union. Earlier in his address, NUP general Secretary, Actor Zal urged the pensioners to resist any attempt to break their ranks.