A query to Lagos chair Agnes Sessi has exposed growing tensions over labour officials’ political affiliations ahead of the 2027 elections

A fresh NLC rift has emerged within Nigeria’s organised labour movement after the national secretariat queried Lagos State Council chairperson Agnes Sessi over her involvement with Working People United, a political support group backing President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.

Also read: BREAKING: Atiku sues Tinubu over alleged NYSC certificate forgery

The dispute has brought into sharper focus the delicate boundary between the institutional role of the Nigeria Labour Congress and the political choices of individual labour leaders as parties and support groups begin positioning themselves ahead of the 2027 elections.

Sessi, who also serves as Lagos State Coordinator of Working People United, participated in the group’s activities on Wednesday despite an earlier directive from the NLC national secretariat asking affiliate unions and their officials to distance themselves from the organisation.

The national secretariat subsequently issued a query to Sessi over her association with the group.

In a memo dated August 11, 2026, and signed by NLC Deputy General Secretary and Head of Information Department and Public Affairs, Benson Upah, the congress said Sessi’s conduct appeared inconsistent with her responsibilities as an elected officer.

“Your involvement in the activities of the organisation appears to be in violation of the oath of office you took as Chairperson of the Lagos State Council and raises serious concerns regarding your obligations to the Congress,” the memo stated.

The NLC further accused Sessi of acting against its rules and directives, supporting what it described as a parallel organisation and undermining the authority of the national body.

The development has created an unusually sensitive situation for the labour movement, particularly because Working People United is openly political in its current activities.

The group, led by former Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers president Williams Akporeha, has publicly endorsed Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid.

In May, the organisation described its purpose as providing a broader platform for working Nigerians to participate in shaping the country’s political direction.

Working People United has since expanded its activities across the country. In July, its Delta chapter endorsed Tinubu and Governor Sheriff Oborevwori for the 2027 elections and pledged to mobilise workers and residents behind both politicians.

The organisation describes itself as a grassroots civic movement bringing together workers, artisans, traders, farmers, professionals and other citizens, rather than as a conventional trade union.

Its own platform says membership is open to working Nigerians across Nigeria and the diaspora.

Akporeha has now rejected the NLC’s position, arguing that the national leadership cannot prevent workers from exercising their constitutional right to associate with organisations of their choice.

Responding to the controversy on Friday, Akporeha described the directive as an affront to workers’ rights and invoked Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

“They have now ignored their constitutional mandate of protecting workers welfare to dabble into politics for the single reason of being against the re-election of Mr President in 2027,” Akporeha said.

He argued that there was no provision in the NLC’s constitution requiring individuals to obtain approval from the national leadership before joining a political or civic organisation.

Akporeha also accused NLC President Joe Ajaero of attempting to influence workers towards the Labour Party and its candidates, alleging that similar efforts were made during the 2023 elections.

The accusation introduces a wider political dimension to the dispute.

The NLC was closely associated with the Labour Party’s political rise during the 2023 election cycle, although the congress and the political party remain separate institutions.

The labour movement’s current leadership has also continued to emphasise its trade union responsibilities.

At NUPENG’s 2026 delegates conference, Akporeha, who subsequently became a National Trustee of the NLC, described the union as an organisation whose core responsibility was defending workers’ rights and welfare.

For Sessi, the immediate issue is more specific: whether her public involvement with a group campaigning for Tinubu is compatible with the obligations attached to her elected position within the NLC.

That question could become increasingly consequential as labour leaders, professional groups and civic organisations take clearer positions ahead of 2027.

Working People United has already framed its political activity as part of broader citizen participation, while openly supporting Tinubu’s economic reforms and second-term bid.

The NLC, meanwhile, appears concerned that participation by its elected officials in a pro-government political organisation could blur the distinction between the congress as a labour institution and individual political preferences.

At the heart of the dispute is therefore not simply Sessi’s association with WoPU, but the question of how far a labour organisation can regulate the political activities of its officials without infringing on their individual rights.

For now, the query issued to Sessi leaves the dispute at an internal disciplinary stage.

Also read: Tinubu urges INEC, security chiefs to protect Osun vote

Her response, and any subsequent decision by the NLC leadership, could determine whether the disagreement remains contained within the Lagos council or develops into a more consequential confrontation over political freedom and organisational discipline within Nigeria’s labour movement.