NLC Begins Five-Day Warning Strike

• The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has directed its members in Kaduna State to commence the five-day warning strike from midnight of Sunday in the state.
• This is just as the Kaduna State was thrown into total blackout on Sunday ahead of the industrial action by the NLC.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has directed its members in Kaduna State to commence the five-day warning strike from midnight of Sunday in the state.

EKO HOT BLOG had earlier reported that the NLC and its affiliate unions will on Monday embark on a five-day warning strike over the recent disengagement of civil servants by the state government.

The move follows Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s announcement in April to disengage civil servants in the state, citing fiscal reasons.

This is just as the Kaduna State was thrown into total blackout on Sunday ahead of the industrial action by the NLC.

The total blackout came after a warning by the National Union of Electricity Employees, an affiliate of the NLC, directing its workers to join the strike action in Kaduna beginning on Midnight Sunday.

But in its reaction, the state government stated that it won’t bow to the intimidation of the NLC over its planned ‘rightsizing’ of the state workforce.

READ ALSO: Workers’ Sack: NLC To Shut Down Kaduna On Monday

The Commissioner of Local Government Affairs, Malam Jafaru Sani, while speaking at a press conference in Kaduna on Saturday, said it uncovered a plot by the NLC to recruit thugs from other states to cause mayhem under the pretext of embarking on industrial action.

However, the management of Kaduna Electric in a statement on Sunday stated that the service interruption is a result of the strike embarked upon by the NLC.

The statement, which was released by Head, Corporate Communication of Kaduna Electric, Abdulazeez Abdullahi, was titled, ‘power failure due to NLC’s industrial action’.

The statement read, “The Management of Kaduna Electric regrets to inform its customers in Kaduna State that the service interruption currently being experienced in the State is as a result of the industrial action embarked upon by the Nigerian Labour Congress.

“In compliance with the NLC directive, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN has knocked off all our 33KV lines in Kaduna State.”

The Kaduna Electric added, “Consequently, we are appealing to all communities, security agencies, and vigilante groups to be vigilant so that men of the underworld will not cash in on the situation to vandalise power supply installations. Any suspicious movement around distribution sub-stations (transformers) should be reported to the relevant security agency.

“We have the collective responsibility to protect these critical national assets in our neighborhood.

“We once again appeal to both parties in the dispute to strive at an amicable resolution for normalcy to return.”

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

• Fuel Scarcity Looms In Kaduna As NUPENG Directs Workers To Withdraw Service
• Salary Slash, “Mass Suicide” For Nigerian Workers – NLC