Wike Strikes to Jail FCTA Employees Over Disobedience to Court docket Order
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has taken contemporary authorized steps to have hanging employees of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) dedicated to jail for ignoring a court docket order.
The transfer follows the choice of the employees to proceed their strike motion regardless of a directive of the Nationwide Industrial Court docket instructing them to droop the economic motion pending the willpower of a case filed by the FCT Minister.
Wike has approached the court docket to activate contempt proceedings towards the employees for what he described as open defiance of judicial authority.
As a part of the method, a authorized discover often called Kind 48 has been issued towards the hanging employees.
The doc warns them of the authorized penalties of disobeying a legitimate court docket order and alerts the start of contempt motion that would result in imprisonment.
The shape was obtained on Wike’s behalf by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Dr. Ogwu James Onoja, of Bar and Bench Chambers, Abuja.
The discover is titled “Discover of Consequence of disobedience of order of Court docket.”
It states:
“Take word that except you obey the instructions contained within the order of Honourable Justice E. D. Sublimi of the Nationwide Industrial Court docket of Nigeria delivered twenty seventh day of January 2026, you’ll be responsible of the contempt of court docket and will probably be liable to be dedicated to jail.”
The discover was dated January 29 and signed by the Registrar of the Nationwide Industrial Court docket, Olajide Balogun.
Justice Emmanuel Danjuma Sublimi had earlier ordered the employees to instantly droop their strike.
The ruling was issued on January 27 after an utility by the FCT Minister searching for an order compelling the employees to return to responsibility.
The choose held that after a labour dispute is introduced earlier than the Nationwide Industrial Court docket, all industrial actions should cease till the matter is resolved.
He relied on Part 18(1)(e) of the Commerce Disputes Act, which offers that strikes should be suspended when a dispute is formally referred to the court docket.
Justice Sublimi warned that failure to adjust to the regulation may appeal to sanctions.
He added that sustaining industrial peace within the Federal Capital Territory was extra necessary than any inconvenience attributable to suspending the strike.
Regardless of being served with the court docket order, the employees reportedly resumed their industrial motion 4 days later.
The employees claimed they’d filed a discover of enchantment on the Court docket of Attraction and have been subsequently justified in persevering with the strike.
Nonetheless, Wike’s authorized workforce rejected that place.
They argued that submitting an enchantment doesn’t mechanically droop the impact of a court docket order.
Based on the senior lawyer, there should be a particular order of court docket staying execution earlier than the employees can lawfully resume their strike.
In court docket paperwork, the authorized workforce said:
“Court docket orders will not be made in useless. They’re made to be obeyed for sanity to prevail within the society.”
The substantive go well with has been adjourned to March 25, 2026, for listening to.
Wike had listed the President and Secretary of the Joint Union Motion Congress (JUAC), Rifkatu Iortyer and Abdullahi Umar Saleh, as respondents within the case.
The economic motion started on January 19 when employees of the FCTA and the Federal Capital Growth Authority (FCDA) downed instruments over what they described as “unmet calls for” by the Federal Authorities.
The strike led to the shutdown of ministries, departments and businesses below the FCTA.
Space councils and a number of other parastatals in Abuja have been additionally affected, disrupting public companies throughout the capital.
Recall that Politics Nigeria had earlier reported the entire shutdown of actions throughout Abuja following the FCTA employees’ strike over welfare and administrative calls for.