Minimum wage: Ministries, agencies, court shut down in Abuja to comply with NLC strike

Government-owned institutions in Abuja have totally complied with the ongoing seven-day warning strike by the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC.

DAILY POST observed that public servants in Abuja, the nation’s capital joined in the warning strike declared by the NLC which started on Thursday.

The Organised labour had said that the declaration of the seven-day warning strike became inevitable after talks with the Federal Government over a new minimum wage ended in deadlock.

Some of the civil servants who spoke with our correspondents confirmed that some ministries have shut down completely in compliance with the warning strike.

Mr Ikem who spoke with DAILY POST from the Ministry of Health said, “Offices in the Ministry have down tooled. We are complying with NLC’s call in total.

Also speaking to DAILY POST, another civil servant from NAFDAC, who gave his name as Ephraim said that, “All activities have been shut down and everyone stayed away from their offices, which now remain under lock and key.”

DAILY POST reports that the Federal Secretariat was shut down by various labour union executives on Thursday.

The gates of the office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation; the Court of Appeal; other Ministries and agencies within the FCT were locked.

Also, the Ministries of Finance; Foreign Affairs and Environment were also closed as union members used their vehicles to block the entrance to some of the buildings.

Meanwhile, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) was empty as only a few senior staff members were seen reporting to work.

However, some private institutions did not join the warning strike. Speaking for the private sector, the Nigerian Employers’ Consultative Association, NECA, on Thursday said the organised private organizations was not part of the strike action because the leadership of national labour unions, NLC had assured NECA that the private sector was not the target of the industrial action but the government.