The Labour Party has expressed deep grief over the death of Comrade Emmanuel Ugboaja, General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), who died recently at the age of 60.
The party described Ugboaja’s death as a major loss to Nigeria’s Labour movement, the democratic community and the Labour Party family, noting that he was a committed unionist, democrat and a strong pillar of support to the party’s current leadership.
The National Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party, Ken Eluma Asogwa, said Ugboaja played a significant role in strengthening the relationship between the Labour Party and the organised labour movement, particularly the NLC. According to him, the late union leader actively participated in meetings and deliberations that produced the party’s new Constitution and made valuable contributions to the process.
The party said Ugboaja’s contributions to its growth and development would remain deeply appreciated, describing him as one of the individuals who played important roles in the evolution of the political platform.
Ugboaja was a member of the National Executive Council (NEC) that approved the formation of the Party for Social Democracy (PSD) in 2003. The PSD later metamorphosed into the Labour Party in 2004. He subsequently served as Deputy National Secretary of the Labour Party and National Secretary of the NLC Political Commission.
Beyond organised labour and partisan politics, the late Ugboaja was actively involved in efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s democracy. He participated in the defunct National Constitutional Reform Conferences of 2005 and 2014, where he contributed to deliberations that shaped the final reports of the conferences.
He also served as a Director of the Alliance for Credible Elections and championed a national campaign for electoral reforms between 2007 and 2010. The campaign contributed to the process that eventually led to the establishment of the Justice Uwais Electoral Reform Committee by the administration of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
The Labour Party said Ugboaja’s record reflected a life dedicated to the Labour movement, democratic development and national service, stressing that his contributions would remain part of Nigeria’s collective democratic history.
The party extended its condolences to the leadership and members of the NLC, the organised labour movement, Ugboaja’s colleagues, friends and associates, as well as his immediate family.
The Labour Party prayed that God Almighty would grant his soul eternal rest and give his family, the Labour movement and the nation the strength to bear the loss.
