El-Rufai Appoints Bello, Fmr FCT Chief Judge, To Lead Inquiry Into NLC Strike In Kaduna

The Kaduna state government has appointed Ishaq Bello, a retired chief judge of the high court of the federal capital territory (FCT), to lead an inquiry into the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) strike of May.

This was after Nasir el-Rufai, Kaduna governor, resolved to disengage 4,000 workers across the 23 LGAs, citing the state’s high wage bill as the reason for the decision in April.

At the time, the Kaduna government described the strike as an act of “sabotage”.

In a statement on Tuesday, Muyiwa Adekeye, el-Rufai’s special adviser on media, said the judicial commission of inquiry has Eyo Ekpo, former attorney-general of Cross River, and Joan Jatau-Kadiya, a former attorney-general of Kaduna, as members.

“The Inquiry has 14 terms of reference,” Adekeye said.

“It is charged to ascertain the legality of the warning strike, the actions of various persons and organisations and determine whether such actions amount to any breach of of the Trade Union Act, the Trade Disputes Act, the Trade Disputes (Essential Services) Act, the Miscellaneous Offenses Act, the Quarantine Act, the Public Health Law and Penal Code Law of Kaduna State and other laws.

“The Inquiry will also ascertain the economic losses incurred during the strike, assign responsibility for actions and make recommendations for appropriate actions, including civil remedies, criminal prosecution and policy measures.

“Section 7 of the commissions of Inquiry Law grants the Judicial Commission of Inquiry the power to summon any person in Nigeria to give evidence and to issue a warrant to compel the attendance of anyone so summoned.”

Recall that there was no activity in several schools and hospitals in Kaduna after the NLC commenced a five-day warning strike in the state.