By Daniel Tyokua
The Federal Capital Territory chapters of Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) with Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) have drawn battle lines with the Six Area Councils’ chairmen over their failure to offset the arrears of area councils’ staff and teachers.
Nigeria Union of Teachers had on September 18, embarked on strike over failure of the chairmen to pay the teachers 25 months entitlements.
There are also indications that NULGE will embark on strike if the chairmen didn’t heed to the union complaint in October.
Findings by The AUTHORITY revealed that the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees has since began consultation with strategic stakeholders over the industrial action.
Abdullahi Kabir, President of NUGLE FCT chapter, told The AUTHORITY that the Union is unhappy with the chairmen over their failure to pay the councils’ staff their arrears but didn’t give date for the strike.
Recalled that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, had resolved the protracted disputes between the six Area Councils and the unions last year.
For Nigeria Union of Teachers, the strike was a continuation of an earlier one suspended by the union in 2023 over non-payment of a 40 per cent peculiar allowance and 25 months of minimum wage arrears, among other issues.
The NUT suspended the strike on October 2, 2023, to allow for the resolution of the issues within six weeks, which was not achieved.
NULGE had drawn battle lines with the area councils’ chairmen over entitlements, including hazard allowance and pension, among other unresolved issues.
But, the Chairman, FCT Council of Chiefs, and Ona of Abaji, Alhaji Adamu Yunusa in a meeting with the stakeholders, appealed to the minister to wade into the crisis, lamenting that children were wasting away at home due to the ongoing strike.
Announcing the resolution of the disputes, the minister said that the FCTA would settle 40 per cent each of the debt owed to the striking teachers and local government employees.
He added that the area councils, on their part, would settle the remaining 60 per cent respectively.
Till the time of filling this report the Chairmen were yet to reach out to the unions to resolve the grey areas.
