The Police Command in Nasarawa State said it did not disrupt the
strike embarked upon by members of the state chapter of the
Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) on Monday in Lafia.
The command’s Spokesman, DSP Idrissu Kennedy, told journalists
that the command could not have disrupted the strike because the
workers had the right to demand for a better welfare.
“Workers have right to demand for better entitlements but what
the police was against was the locking of offices at the high court
premises by the workers.
“Strike does not empower them to lock up and take over
government property such as offices.
“There are different methods in which they can attain that goal
but that doesn’t mean they should take over the offices.
“That is a government property.
“They can continue with their strike but taking over the court
premises is amounting to something else. It is out of place. That
is what we are trying to correct,” Kennedy said.
Mr Jimoh Musa, Chairman of the union, told newsmen that the
action of the police was to intimidate the workers.
“The policemen came in large numbers, trying to intimidate us
that we don’t have right to do what we were doing.
“We told them that we have the right and that we embarked on
strike because our rights were being infringed upon.
“The police officers threatened to kick us out of the court
premises by any means if we refused to open the gates to the
premises and leave the place.
“That is a threat to our lives. If an Area Commander can come to
a lawful gathering and intimidate us, it is not acceptable to
us.
“We don’t want guns but we say no to it. If the commander likes,
he should kill us,” Musa said.
He said that the ongoing strike had been peaceful and wondered
why the police would want to disrupt it.
Besides, Musa said that negotiations between the management and
the workers were ongoing, adding that the workers needed to be
available for update on the outcome of the negotiations.
The workers decided on Feb. 16 to embark on an indefinite strike
following the alleged refusal of the state judiciary to meet their
demands.
The workers are demanding for the conversion or promotion of
workers who went for further studies legitimately in the past four
years to the new cadre.
They are also demanding for the explanation to the alleged
reduction of workers’ salaries without any clear explanations from
the management, among others.
The Police Command in Nasarawa State said it did not disrupt the
strike embarked upon by members of the state chapter of the
Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) on Monday in
Lafia.
The command’s Spokesman, DSP Idrissu Kennedy, told journalists
that the command could not have disrupted the strike because the
workers had the right to demand for a better welfare.
“Workers have right to demand for better entitlements but what
the police was against was the locking of offices at the high court
premises by the workers.
“Strike does not empower them to lock up and take over
government property such as offices.
“There are different methods in which they can attain that goal
but that doesn’t mean they should take over the offices.
“That is a government property.
“They can continue with their strike but taking over the court
premises is amounting to something else. It is out of place. That
is what we are trying to correct,” Kennedy said.
Mr Jimoh Musa, Chairman of the union, told newsmen that the
action of the police was to intimidate the workers.
“The policemen came in large numbers, trying to intimidate us
that we don’t have right to do what we were doing.
“We told them that we have the right and that we embarked on
strike because our rights were being infringed upon.
“The police officers threatened to kick us out of the court
premises by any means if we refused to open the gates to the
premises and leave the place.
“That is a threat to our lives. If an Area Commander can come to
a lawful gathering and intimidate us, it is not acceptable to
us.
“We don’t want guns but we say no to it. If the commander likes,
he should kill us,” Musa said.
He said that the ongoing strike had been peaceful and wondered
why the police would want to disrupt it.
Besides, Musa said that negotiations between the management and
the workers were ongoing, adding that the workers needed to be
available for update on the outcome of the negotiations.
The workers decided on Feb. 16 to embark on an indefinite strike
following the alleged refusal of the state judiciary to meet their
demands.
The workers are demanding for the conversion or promotion of
workers who went for further studies legitimately in the past four
years to the new cadre.
They are also demanding for the explanation to the alleged
reduction of workers’ salaries without any clear explanations from
the management, among others.
Read more https://nairalaw.com/police-deny-disrupting-jusun-strike-in-lafia/