NLC General Secretary Emmanuel Ugboaja Dies at 60 After Prolonged Illness.

The General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Emmanuel Ugboaja, has died at the age of 60 after a prolonged illness.
Ugboaja’s death was announced to members of the NLC’s National Executive Council by the President of the Congress, Joe Ajaero, during a meeting in Enugu, following a letter from the deceased’s family.

A veteran trade unionist and lawyer, Ugboaja became the fifth General Secretary of the NLC in 2019 after building a career in organised labour that spanned more than three decades.
Born on May 15, 1966, Ugboaja obtained a law degree from the University of Calabar in 1987. He initially practised law before joining the trade union movement in 1993.
NLC historical records describe him as the first Nigerian lawyer to work full-time for a trade union.
Ugboaja began his major union career with the National Union of Chemical, Footwear, Rubber, Leather and Non-Metallic Products Employees, where he later served as General Secretary from 2000 to 2005.
His professional career also extended into civil society and national reform initiatives. Between 2006 and 2009, he served as Coordinator of Advocacy and Mobilisation at the Alliance for Credible Elections before joining the NLC Secretariat in 2009.
He participated in major national reform processes, serving as a delegate to the Political and Constitutional Reform Conference convened under former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2005 and the 2014 National Conference under former President Goodluck Jonathan.
Before becoming NLC General Secretary, Ugboaja served as Principal Assistant General Secretary and headed the Industrial Relations and Organising Department of the labour centre.
His death marks the loss of a prominent figure in Nigeria’s organised labour movement, where he played a major role in trade union administration and industrial relations.
Details surrounding his death remained limited as of the time of filing this report.