The Citizens Advocacy for Social & Economic Rights (CASER) has urged the Attorney-General of the federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, to direct the arrest and prosecution of electricity union workers for embarking on strike action on August 17 knowing fully well that they render essential service to the nation.
Electricity workers under the aegis of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) had shut down a number of power supply stations across the country throwing parts of the nation into darkness.
They had declared industrial action to protest the directive by the Transmission Company of Nigeria board that all principal managers in acting capacity must undergo a promotion interview before getting promoted to acting general manager.
Later, the union called off the strike same day after reaching a truce with the Minister of Labour, Dr Chris Ngige.
But CASER’s Executive Director, Frank Tietie, maintained in a statement, yesterday, that the strike action was an act of terrorism on the nation.
He argued that it is unconstitutional for trade unions and workers in the essential services sector to embark on such actions.
He wrote, “What the electricity workers who went on strike have failed to realise is that their strike action on the 17th of August, 2022 amounted to an act of terrorism against the Nigerian State and that they are, therefore, liable to be punished with life imprisonment on conviction according to the combined provisions of Section 1 of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act (as Amended) which defines an ‘act of terrorism’ to include any act deliberately done with malice, aforethought and which: (a) may seriously harm or damage a country or an international organisation; (b) is intended or can reasonably be regarded as having been intended to— (i) unduly compel a government or international organisation to perform or abstain from performing any act; (ii) seriously intimidate a population ; (iii) seriously destabilise, or destroy the fundamental political, constitutional, economic, social structures of a country or an international organisation; or, (iv) otherwise influence such government or international organisation by intimidation or coercion; and (c) involves, as the case may be, the interference with or disruption of the supply of water, power or any other fundamental natural resource, the effect of which is to endanger human life.”
Tietie added that irrespective of the genuineness of the demands of any Nigerian workers union, the Nigerian law restrains them from strike actions capable of crippling the economy.
He urged the AGF to use his office to enforce legal provisions against illegal strikes.
The statement partly reads: “The Citizens Advocacy for Social & Economic Rights (CASER) has since 2014 been at the forefront of calling for proper legal action against trade unions in Nigeria which embark on illegal strike actions, especially in the essential services sectors of health and education.
“It is criminal by the provisions of Section 31 (6) of the Trade Unions Act for workers in the essential services sector to embark on strike actions, but the failure of successive administrations to deal with this mindless criminality has led to the present worsening and highly embarrassing situation where even electricity workers have now decided to disregard the law by embarking on debilitating strike action on the 17th of August, 2022.
“There is a reason why the National Assembly of Nigeria in 2005 outlawed strikes in the essential services sector. It is not unconnected with the fragility of the Nigerian society and other related problems which are fundamental to the well-being of the Nigerian people. Thus, in that short period for which power generation and distribution were wholly shut down in Nigeria, the electricity union succeeded in inflicting untold hardships on Nigerians and caused losses in the billions of Naira to Nigerian businesses. This is unacceptable!
“To the above end, the electricity workers cannot be excused by the exception in subsection 3 of the above section as they embarked on the strike for coercion.
“What the electricity workers have done is not different from acts by a terrorist group such as Boko Haram. Therefore, it is only appropriate to institute criminal proceedings against them to serve as deterrence to other unions in the essential services sector that may contemplate any illegal strikes.
“If electricity workers can embark on strikes, then members of the Nigerian Police and military- Army, Navy and Air Force can also embark on strike actions. Such a situation is unimaginable. That is why the law prohibits such strike actions.
“Therefore, dear Attorney General, your failure to enforce the legal standards as to illegal strikes as in the tradition of past administrations which, for reasons of lack of political will, failed to act in the public interest, will lead to the further expansion of the reign of impunity which has been the bane of Nigeria’s fragile democracy.
“TAKE NOTICE, therefore, that CASER shall continue to engage your office in this matter in the hope that decisive actions will be taken against illegal strikes in Nigeria. Where necessary, it shall secure an appropriate order of a court of competent jurisdiction to ensure compliance with the above standards set in Nigerian criminal law.”