The ongoing industrial action by workers of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) escalated on Monday as striking employees, supported by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), took their protest to the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) in Abuja.
The demonstration followed a directive from the NLC, which openly declared its full backing for the strike, describing the action as a response to what it called “persistent violations” of workers’ rights by the FCTA management and the political leadership of the territory.
At the court premises, protesters displayed placards bearing inscriptions such as “Wike must go!!”, “Abuja no be Rivers”, “Pay promotion arrears”, “Enough is Enough” and “No working tools,” underscoring their grievances against the FCTA authorities.
The FCTA workers had commenced an indefinite strike last week over what they described as the authorities’ failure to address long-standing labour and welfare demands. The action has since resulted in the shutdown of activities across major government offices in Abuja.
Amid the standoff, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has approached the court, dragging the Joint Unions Action Committee (JUAC) before the NICN over the industrial action.
The suit, marked NICN/ABJ/17/2026, was filed at the Abuja division of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria and is scheduled for hearing today.
Court documents indicate that the claimants in the case are the FCT minister and the FCTA, while the defendants are the JUAC President, Rifkatu Iortyer, and the union’s Secretary-General, Abdullahi Saleh, who were sued in their representative capacities.
