*As Court To Rule On Motion To Halt Industrial Action January 27
Workers of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), with the backing of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), on Monday picketed the National Industrial Court in Abuja as part of an ongoing total and indefinite strike over unresolved labour disputes.
The protest followed a directive from the NLC, which declared full support for the industrial action, describing the strike as justified amid what it termed persistent violations of workers’ rights by the FCTA management and political leadership.
The workers are demanding the removal of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
Placards carried by the protesters bore inscriptions such as “Wike must go!!”, “Abuja no be Rivers”, “Pay promotion arrears”, “Enough is Enough” and “No working tools”.
Meanwhile, the National Industrial Court sitting in Abuja has fixed January 27 to rule on an application seeking to restrain workers of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) from continuing their ongoing strike.
Justice Emmanuel Subilim adjourned the matter for ruling after hearing submissions from counsel to both parties.
The Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, filed the suit seeking an order compelling FCT Administration (FCTA) workers to resume work.
The workers embarked on strike over alleged unresolved welfare issues, including five months of unpaid salaries, long-outstanding promotion arrears, and poor working conditions.
The minister sued the President and Secretary of the Joint Union Action Congress (JUAC) over the industrial action.
Counsel to the respondents, Maxwell Okpara, urged the court to join the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) as parties to the suit, arguing that this would make any order of the court binding on them.
However, counsel to the minister, James Onoja, SAN, opposed the application, maintaining that the suit was instituted against two individuals who are not registered under the Trade Union Act.
Onoja urged the court to order the striking workers to resume duties, stating that the industrial action has crippled essential services in the nation’s capital.
In his response, Justice Subilim held that since the claimants brought the case against two specific respondents, the court could not join additional parties not listed by the claimants.
Court documents show that the Minister of the FCT and the FCT Administration are the claimants, while Rifkatu Iortyer and Abdullahi Saleh are named as defendants.
The matter was adjourned until Tuesday for ruling on the application for a restraining order.
