•NLC plans mass protest in Kaduna
•’Send your wards to school’
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has accused Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai of frustrating efforts at resolving the crisis following the sack of 21,780 primary school teachers.
NLC President Ayuba Wabba told a news conference in Abuja that the reconciliatory process, initiated by the minister of Labour, failed because the government did not report back to the meeting after it was adjourned to allow its team consult with the governor on the next line of action.
Wabba said labour and its social partners have concluded plans to begin a series of actions, with the first protest to hold in Kaduna tomorrow.
The NLC boss called on President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene and call the governor to order. According to him, no country can survive impunity.
His words: “A process of reconciliation and engagement was initiated by the Minister of Labour – two meetings were held and the governor himself attended the first meeting. We were there with the NUT, and during the second meeting, we advanced some recommendations and suggestions.
“The second meeting was adjourned when the government team said they wanted to consult with the governor and get back to the meeting but they never came back with any recommendation, or to even react to the recommendations which were adopted at the end of the meeting. Rather, what we saw was the distribution of letters of disengagement. “Beyond that, this issue was taken to the National Industrial Court and the process of the court was served on the government.
“An injunction was granted by the court that all processes regarding the sack of the teachers be put on hold until the case is determined. But on January 3, they started distributing letters of sack to the teachers.
“So clearly, there is a violation of the provisions of the Constitution and the rule of law. We cannot run a country on impunity. That is the process of engagement that has gone in, but has yielded no result because at the end of the day, the Kaduna State government has not respected this clear provision of the Constitution and our Labour laws.
“Under the law, all parties should respect the process, but it is obvious that only the workers have respected the process, and given ourselves to the reconciliation process.
“Strike is not illegal in Nigeria, especially having served the necessary notice. It is apparent that El-Rufai’s approach is a clear violation and abuse of the tenets and provisions of our labour laws and well known international best practices, and are capable of exacerbating social tensions and societal ills in the state.
“Having exhausted all processes aimed at constructive engagement with the state government, it is clear that El-Rufai has to be stopped by all means, with all means lawful for the sake of Kaduna State and Nigerian people.
“Consequently, we shall begin a series of actions, with the first phase of protests in Kaduna tomorrow, to constitutionally defend the rights of the affected workers.”
Governor Nasir El-Rufai has urged parents and guardians to send their children to school irrespective of the strike, saying second term has resumed and teachers are ready to teach.
Addressing a news conference yesterday, El-Rufai said the strike was aimed at scuttling the ongoing education reforms. He added that the scripts of the 43,000 candidates, who applied for teaching jobs, has been marked and the result of the 25,000 to be recruited would soon be released.
The governor, who spoke through the Permanent Member in the state’s Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Shehu Sani Othman, said the government has opened attendance registers in schools to check absentee teachers.
