PRESS RELEASE
NUPENG PUTS MEMBERS ON RED ALERT OVER ATTACK ON NLC PEACEFUL PROTESTS IN KADUNA STATE
The National Leadership of NUPENG is deeply saddened with the violent turn of NLC peaceful protests by the dictatorial and despotic regime of Governor Nasir El-Rufai in Kaduna State.
The Leadership of the Union is therefore calling on the Federal Government to immediately call on Kaduna State Governor Mallam Nasir El-Rufai to order before his arrogance and power drunk ego further push the situation into horrendous calamity as he has been doing in all issues relating to human lives and wellbeing.
Consequently, the Union reiterates that no Labour Leaders or workers as the case may be, be harmed, harassed, maimed, humiliated or victimized during this 5-day peaceful protests in the State.
Our Union is raising this alarm following the very reliable report of the clandestine move of Governor Nasir El-RUfai to hurt and put the lives of NLC President,Comrade Ayuba Wabba and other Labour Leaders to danger in his usual blind egotistical style of running government in the State
NUPENG therefore warns that if any harm is inflicted on any of the members of organized Labour, the Leadership of the Union will not hesitate to call on all our members throughout the nation for a total shut down of all our services in the upstream, mid-stream and downstream sectors of the oil and gas industry.
In the light of the above, we are therefore putting all NUPENG members nationwide on red alert and may at very short notice of five hours call for a nationwide industrial action if situation arises
Our solidarity remains constant for the Union makes us strong.
SIGNED:
COMRADE WILLIAMS AKPOREHA,
NATIONAL PRESIDENT OF NUPENG,
COMRADE AFOLABI OLAWALE,
GENERAL SECRETARY OF NUPENG.
KDSG WILL NOT TOLERATE CRIMINAL ACTS DISGUISED AS INDUSTRIAL ACTION
Today, the Kaduna State Government reviewed the sundry criminal actions that have defined the campaign of economic and social sabotage and lawlessness waged by the NLC.
KDSG considers as unacceptable the serial violations of the Miscellaneous Offences Act and the Trade Union Act that have occurred over the last two days. The state government commends citizens for remaining calm amidst this assault on their rights and comfort and their businesses.
However, KDSG cannot be expected to tolerate the brazen shutdown of electricity, attack on public infrastructure and buildings, locking up hospitals and forcefully discharging patients, unlawful trespass into public facilities and the wanton use of coercion and restraints of personal freedom by the NLC.
Efforts to dress up criminal activity as industrial action do not change the reality of the lawbreaking that has unfolded, including their persistently ignoring the prohibition against impeding essential services. Also, KDSG cannot ignore the illegal pressures brought to disrupt the operations of banks and other private business whose staff and customers do not have any industrial dispute with the state or any other government.
KDSG acknowledges doctors and some other categories of health workers that are trying to run public health facilities, but regrets that some nurses have joined the unlawful strike and engaged in sabotage of some of our health facilities. Nurses were implicated in the forceful discharge of patients in many health facilities.
Reports from Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital disclosed that some identified nurses disconnected the oxygen supply of a two-day old baby in an incubator on Monday, 17th May 2021. The names of the three nurses from the Special Baby Care Unit (SBCU) who were involved in this despicable act have been forwarded to the Ministry of Justice to initiate prosecution for attempted murder or murder in the event we lose the baby.
In addition, KDSG has decided the following:
1. Ayuba Wabba and his senior confederates in the NLC are declared wanted, and will be vigorously prosecuted for violations of the Penal Code of Kaduna State, the Miscellaneous Offences and the Trade Dispute (Essential Services) Acts. They are advised to report to the Ministry of Justice and the Police Headquarters to take their statements;
2. The Ministry of Health will dismiss all nurses below GL 14 for going on an unlawful strike. Salaries that could have gone to them are to be given as extraordinary occupational allowances to the health workers who are at their duty posts to fill the gap of those absconding from duty. The Ministry of Health has been directed to advertise vacancies for the immediate recruitment of new nurses to replace those dismissed;
3. Any academic staff of KASU that does not report for work will be dismissed. The authorities of KASU are to submit a copy of the attendance register for all categories of staff daily to the Secretary to the State Governemnt and the Commissioner of Education;
4. All MDAs are also to submit daily copies of attendance register to the Head of Service;
KDSG views the actions of the NLC as equivalent to the actions of the bandits kidnapping and menacing our citizens. Bandits illegally use arms, but the NLC is deploying mob action for exactly the same ends: trying to hold hostage the freedoms, economic interests, livelihoods and resources of the people of Kaduna State. It is a vain expectation that this government will respond differently to sets of unlawful actions that have the same ends.
KDSG will not submit its treasury to the entitled minority. We will reform and rightsize our public service to meet the needs and resources of the Kaduna State even if the NLC strikes ad infinitum. The government remains committed to using all the resources it can generate to serve the interests of the majority of its citizens, providing social services beyond paying salaries, always putting the interests of the many ahead of the few.
Signed
Muyiwa Adekeye
Special Adviser to the Governor (Media & Communication)
18th May 2021.
GOVERNORS’ FORUM BEGS LABOUR
The Progressive Governors Forum, PGF, has appealed to the Kaduna State Government under the leadership of their colleague, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai to take all the necessary steps to ensure the resolution of all disagreements with organized labour in the larger interest of the people of Kaduna State.
In a statement, the Chairman of the Forum and governor of Kebbi state Alhaji Atiku Bagudu, explains that Nigerians are already overstretched with many challenges need immediate solutions.
Alhaji Atiku argues that at this critical point of the nation’s democratic journey, there cannot be limits to engagement between the government and the citizens to restore industrial harmony.
He therefore calls for urgent resolution of the current face-up between the Kaduna State Government and the NLC, urging the organized Labour in the state to also recognise that the burden of leadership is more about responding to challenges based on correcting past mistakes.
Governor Bagudu says as Progressives Governors, they share the vision of Kaduna State Government in reforming the Local Governments to make them more efficient and consequently the pivot of critical development initiatives.
