The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has warned Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) workers to resume duties following a court order halting their ongoing strike or face consequences.
Wike spoke on Tuesday after the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), Abuja, granted an interlocutory injunction compelling workers under the Joint Union Action Committee to suspend the industrial action.
The court held that while the dispute qualified as a trade dispute, the right to embark on a strike was not absolute under the law.
The minister stressed that workers were legally bound to comply with the ruling and resume work, noting that his administration would enforce discipline if the directive was ignored.
He added that the FCT Administration would not succumb to intimidation or blackmail, but remained open to what he described as responsible dialogue.
Wike also faulted the leadership of the workers’ union, accusing it of inconsistency despite several engagements with management and security agencies.
According to him, meaningful discussions could only continue if the unions acted in good faith.
The striking workers are demanding the payment of salary backlogs, promotion arrears, and improvements in working conditions.
He said:
“I have given them the window. You can see me in the office today. If you don’t come to work tomorrow, we are going to apply the ‘big stick.’”
“We have been almost disposed to dialogue. They have met with the management, they have met with the security agencies. What are the issues? We have them on table before. Before you know it they have done a different thing.”
“If genuinely it is okay, we have seen what has gone, what happened, then we will talk. But if it is on blackmail, intimidation, we will not agree. If you like go and hire all the civil servants in the whole world to take over Abuja, it is not my business.”