…As armed thugs disrupt labour’s protest
…APC Govs urge gov. to negotiate with labour
Kaduna State governor, Nasir Ahmed el-Rufa’i, yesterday declared the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) leaders who coordinated the shutdown of the State in protest over the mass sack of workers as bandits.
The governor vowed that they will be prosecuted, accusing them of wanton destruction of public properties and disruption of peace. Their actions, according to him, were equivalent to the actions of bandits terrorising the State.
He also ordered the sack of all nurses in the State below Grade Level-14 and lecturers of the Kaduna State University, (KASU), for joining the five-day warning strike.
However, shortly after, the governor declared the NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, wanted for economic sabotage, the labour leader has led a protest within Kaduna metropolis.
The protest turned violent as armed thugs attacked the workers, throwing stones at them. According to reports, the workers had converged at the popular NEPA roundabout within the metropolis to continue the Day-2 of their protest when the thugs invaded the area and started throwing stones and other dangerous weapons at them.
The attack forced many of the protesters to scamper for safety. The armed thugs were later dispersed by security operatives with tear gas.
While it is not known who actually sent the thugs, the NLC chairman pointed accusing fingers at the State governor, Nasir el-Rufa’i.
Speaking with newsmen amid the protest, Wabba said he informed the Department of State Services, (DSS) after he received earlier information of the plan to disrupt the protest.
Wabba responded to el-Rufai’s threat by saying, “Let him come and arrest me. it is not about me. We are here and waiting for them.”
Meanwhile, the Progressive Governors Forum, (PGF), has admonished el-Rufa’i to negotiate with the NLC to resolve the strike in the State.
Speaking on the development, the Forum noted that ‘it is not the time for muscle-flexing, considering the dwindling revenue of States’.
The Kebbi State governor and chairman of the Forum, Abubakar Bagudu, appealed to the NLC leadership to recognise the challenges facing the country.
Recall that el-Rufa’i and Labour have been at loggerheads over the decision of the Kaduna government to disengage 4,000 workers across the 23 LGAs of the State.
