Thursday, 20 May 2021: The federal government Wednesday night waded into the labour crisis plaguing the North West state of Kaduna in order to avert a national shutting down of government’s businesses and economy, which would be unhealthy for the country’s deplorable and fledging economy.

The Nigeria Labor Congress, (NLC), Kaduna State council had declared a five day warning strike to coerce the Kaduna state government to recall the over 4,000 workers sacked by the el-Rufai administration recently.

The strike was given the national outlook when the President of the NLC, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, moved the secretariat of the labor house to Kaduna as he personally led the protest and supervised the compliance level of the workers strike.

Investigations by CEOAFRICA revealed that the Buhari administration was jittery and would not want to handle any other crisis that may engage Nigerians’ attention like last year’s ENDSARS protest, hence the quick attention given to Kaduna labour crisis.

Recall the Federal Government through the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, had expressed concern over the current faceoff between the Kaduna State Government and the Nigeria Labour Congress in the wake of the sack of some workers by the state government, adding that “It is therefore taking immediate steps to resolve the impasse with the beef-up of security in Kaduna to avoid any breakdown of law and order.”

Sources closed to the seat of power, Aso Rock Villa, however hinted our correspondent that the government became more jittery when on Wednesday evening, it became public knowledge that the sister union to the NLC -  the Trade Union Congress, (TUC) have decided after its virtual emergency National Executive Committee meeting that the TUC is solidly behind the action of NLC.

The government weighs this intervention so high going by the fact that it was even the President of TUC, Comrade Quadri Olaleye that personally signed the press release.

A source within the government said ‘If TUC with over 6 million members join NLC in a strike, it would cripple the nation totally”.

This fears, CEOAFRICA gathered informed the decision of the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, who was acting in the absence of President Muhammadu Buhari who was away to France, to hurriedly direct the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige to convene a negotiating meeting to resolve the Kaduna labour imbroglio.

Similarly, other labour groups such as the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Services Technical and Recreational Services Employees, (AUPCTRE), and National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, (NUPENG), have all signified interest in giving the strike a national colouration by issuing nationwide strike alert in sympathy with Kaduna workers.

The Federal Government, we learnt hurriedly put in place the 11a.m. Thursday meeting in Abuja in which the officials of the organized labour and the Kaduna State government were invited to resolve the crisis amicably.

The organized labor had earlier in the week commenced a five day warning strike to compel the state governor, Nasir el-Rufai to recall over 4,000 workers he sacked recently.