NLC General Secretary Emmanuel Ugboaja dies

Emmanuel Ugboaja, the fifth General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress and the first Nigerian lawyer to work full-time for a trade union, has died after a protracted illness.

As reported by Vanguard, NLC President Joe Ajaero announced Ugboaja’s passing by reading a letter from his family to members of the Congress National Executive Council meeting in Enugu. Details surrounding his death remained sketchy at the time of filing.

Born May 15, 1966, Ugboaja obtained a law degree from the University of Calabar in 1987 before entering the trade union movement in 1993. He served as General Secretary of NUCFRLANMPE from 2000 to 2005, participated in constitutional reform conferences under Presidents Obasanjo and Jonathan, and was appointed NLC General Secretary in August 2019 following a competitive selection process ratified at the NEC meeting in Kano.

His death leaves a significant void in Nigeria’s organised labour movement.