Alhaji Tajudeen Ibikunle Baruwa has officially resumed duties as President of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) at the union’s secretariat in Abuja, following court rulings that affirmed his election.
Baruwa had contested the inauguration of Musiliu Akinsanya, popularly known as MC Oluomo, as union president. The National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) and the Court of Appeal ruled in his favour, barring interference in the operations of the Baruwa-led NURTW executives.
In the NICN ruling (suit No. NICN/ABJ/263/2023), Justice O.O. Oyewumi recognised Baruwa as the duly elected president of the union. Addressing reporters, Baruwa described his return as a peaceful enforcement of court orders, ending a prolonged leadership dispute that saw a forceful takeover of the union secretariat and a legal battle between rival factions.
He said, “We are a law-abiding union whose only mission is to take back what belongs to us. Today, we are taking over peacefully, after waiting for two years for this moment. Our coming here is under the authority of two court judgments.”
The union’s General Secretary, Comrade Suleiman Abdulkadir Musa, explained that despite repeated appeals, the opposing faction had refused to vacate the secretariat. “We have notified the police and are glad the media are witnessing our return, so the world will know what is happening,” he said.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja, in judgment CA/ABJ/CV/293/2024 delivered on November 8, 2024, confirmed Baruwa’s presidency. A three-member panel of Justices Hamma Akawu Barka, Nnamdi Dimgba, and Asmau Ojuolape Akanbi dismissed the appeal filed by Najeem Usman Yasin, Tajudeen Agbede, and others, ruling that it lacked merit and upholding the industrial court’s earlier decision.
Baruwa’s return marks the end of a two-year leadership crisis in Nigeria’s prominent transport union, restoring authority to the legally recognised executives.
Category: Labour & Employment
