By Regional Editor
The ongoing strike and protests by workers of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, entered a volatile phase on Monday as aggrieved staff shifted their protest to the premises of the National Industrial Court, Abuja.
Rather than appear in court to defend their industrial action, workers operating under the Joint Union Action Committee, JUAC, picketed the court complex, effectively shutting down activities within the premises. Court staff were thrown into disarray, while litigants and lawyers with matters slated for hearing or mention were denied access.
Economic and administrative activities across the FCT have remained largely paralysed since last Monday when the protests began, culminating in an indefinite strike now in its second week.
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Chief Nyesom Wike, had approached the Industrial Court seeking an injunction to restrain the workers from continuing the strike.
Backed by the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, the protesting workers, estimated at over 27,000, accused the FCTA management of gross insensitivity to their welfare and poor conditions of service.
Their demands include the payment of five months outstanding wage awards, stalled promotions, non-payment of promotion arrears, and the alleged failure to remit pension contributions and National Housing Fund deductions since May 2025. The workers also described what they termed a total collapse of welfare across FCTA departments, agencies, and boards.
Chanting solidarity songs and waving placards, the workers blocked major access roads to the court, demanding the immediate removal of the FCT Minister.
Placards carried inscriptions such as “Wike Must Go”, “Abuja No Be Rivers”, “Pay Our Promotion Arrears”, “No Working Tools”, and “Enough Is Enough”.
In a statement endorsing the protest, NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, described the workers’ action as justified, accusing the FCTA management of deploying what he termed “fascistic tactics aimed at crushing workers’ solidarity and silencing dissent.”
Ajaero warned that the strike could escalate further if urgent steps were not taken to address the workers’ grievances.
Since the creation of the FCTA, Abuja workers have embarked on several industrial actions, including major strikes by teachers in 2025 and the ongoing indefinite strike in 2026.
Meanwhile, reports indicated that Wike briefly entered his office at the FCTA secretariat on Monday afternoon but exited hurriedly through the back gate in a long convoy after workers became aware of his presence. Members of the Nigerian Union of Teachers, NUT, who recently suspended a four-month strike, reportedly joined the chase.
The protesters’ morale was further boosted when renowned human rights lawyer and activist, Femi Falana, SAN, arrived at the protest ground in solidarity.
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