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Primary school teachers and local government workers from the six Area Councils in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) staged a peaceful protest in Abuja on Thursday, decrying the persistent non-payment of their entitlements and newly approved minimum wage.
The demonstrators, united under the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) and the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), marched through the streets to express their grievances over the refusal of the Area Council Chairmen to implement the ₦70,000 minimum wage and other related benefits.
The protest, long-anticipated and earlier announced for Wednesday, saw widespread participation from education and council workers across all six Area Councils.
The unions expressed their frustration over what they described as unjust treatment compared to their counterparts working directly under the FCT Administration, who are already benefitting from the new wage structure.
In a statement to journalists on Monday in Gwagwalada, the FCT Secretary of NULGE, Comrade Sa’ad Abdulmumin, revealed that the peaceful protest was a deliberate effort to bring national attention to the continued neglect of their rights.
Abdulmumin highlighted that although the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, had approved and disbursed ₦4.1 billion specifically for the implementation of the new minimum wage, the six council chairmen have failed to comply.
He also pointed out that, beyond the minimum wage, the council leaders had refused to enforce the ₦30,000 wage award, the 25–35% salary adjustments, a 40% peculiar allowance, and a 35% adjustment under the CONHESS/CONMESS salary structures.
Furthermore, there has been no remittance of pension deductions into the employees’ Pension Fund Administrators (PFA).
Despite several industrial actions by affected workers, Abdulmumin lamented that the Area Council Chairmen have shown no willingness to address the concerns, describing their stance as “adamant, unmoved, and insensitive” to the welfare of the staff and teachers.
See photos below:
