The National Industrial Court of Nigeria will on January 26 hear a suit filed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barrister Nyesom Wike, challenging the legality of the ongoing strike by workers of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
Justice Emmanuel Danjuma Sublimi fixed the date following the institution of the action by the minister and the FCTA against the Joint Union Action Committee (JUAC), which is coordinating the industrial action by aggrieved workers of the FCTA and the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA).
In the suit, marked NICN/ABJ/17/2026, Wike and the FCTA are listed as plaintiffs, while the President of JUAC, Rifkatu Iortyer, and its Secretary General, Abdullahi Saleh, are named as defendants in their representative capacities.
The minister, through his legal team led by Dr Ogwu James Onoja, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), is asking the court to determine whether the strike action is lawful. He contends that a substantial portion of the workers’ demands had already been met, arguing that the continuation of the strike is unnecessary and contrary to law.
The industrial action began last Monday after the expiration of a seven-day ultimatum issued to the FCT minister. As part of the strike, workers shut down operations at the FCTA Secretariat, prompting the administration to seek judicial intervention as a way of restoring normalcy.
In their prayers before the court, Wike and the FCTA are seeking an order restraining the unions, their officials and agents from picketing, blocking access roads, shutting offices or taking any action capable of disrupting the smooth running of the FCT administration. They accused the unions of obstructing public offices and impeding governance activities in the territory.
At the last court sitting, counsel to the minister and the FCTA were present, but lawyers representing the workers were absent, having not been served with the court processes at the time. The plaintiffs were represented by a formidable team of senior advocates, including Ogwu Onoja (SAN), Moses Ameh Ebute (SAN), George Ibrahim (SAN), K.O. Mustapha and Esther Audu.
To ensure the attendance of the defendants at the next hearing, Justice Sublimi granted an order for substituted service. The court authorised service of the hearing notice through newspaper publication and by pasting the processes at the gate of the FCTA Secretariat, No. 1 Kapital Street, Area 11, Garki, Abuja. The judge ruled that such service would be deemed valid for the proceedings scheduled for January 26.
Meanwhile, JUAC President Rifkatu Iortyer and Secretary General Abdullahi Saleh have confirmed receipt of the court summons, assuring that they will appear in court with their legal team to defend the position of the striking workers.
