NUP Leadership Slams Labour Ministry Over ‘Illegal’ Registration of Rival Body; Pensioners Call for Urgent Tinubu Intervention to Stop Union Fragmentation

The leadership of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) has “flipped the script” on its normally cordial relationship with the Federal Government, raising an alarm over an alleged plot to dismantle the union from within. NUP National President Godwin Abumisi addressed an emergency gathering in Abuja, accusing the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment of orchestrating a “Tsunami” of internal discord by registering a competing group, the Association of Retirees of State Government. The “Solution” to what the union calls a “calculated action to destabilize” their ranks, he says, must come directly from the President.

The “Drill or Drop” urgency of the meeting was palpable. Abumisi warned that the Ministry’s move which he insists contravenes the Trade Unions Act is a “digital trenches” style attack on the union’s decades-old structure. “Our meeting today is a call for a rescue mission in preventing our union from being plunged into avoidable crises,” he stated. While the union has been a “peace-loving” partner to the current administration, the NUP leadership is now drawing a line in the sand: they will “resist with vigour” any attempt to break their collective bargaining power.

Despite the confrontation, the NUP was careful to balance its criticism with praise for the “Renewed Hope” pension reforms. They lauded President Tinubu for the massive funding injections totaling over ₦800 billion that have recently brought “succour” to thousands of retirees. However, the message from the NEC meeting is clear: economic relief means little if the political machinery of the union is shattered by regulatory overreach.

As the 2027 political cycle looms and the government aims for its economic goals, the NUP is betting that their historical cooperation will buy them the Presidential attention they need. For the average retiree, the message today is one of uncertainty: while the “script” of pension payments has improved, the “script” of union unity is now facing its biggest threat in years. The union is now waiting to see if President Tinubu will intervene to clip the Ministry’s wings or allow the fragmentation of one of the country’s oldest labour bodies.