Disco Staff Strike: Blackout Hits Northern States

Workers of the Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company have commenced an industrial action, plunging residents of Kaduna, Sokoto, Zamfara, and Kebbi states into darkness.

The employees, represented by the Nigerian Union of Electricity Employees, began an indefinite strike on Tuesday following a protest against what they deemed unfair treatment by the company’s management.

Reports indicate that the workers were upset about several issues, including six years of unpaid pension contributions, failure to pay death benefits to deceased employees’ families, non-payment of exit packages, the unfair dismissal of seven staff members in Zaria, and an alleged plan to lay off more than 1,000 company employees, among other grievances.

Nonetheless, the Kaduna Disco management criticized the industrial action in a statement released by its Head of Corporate Communication, Abdulazeez Abdullahi, denouncing the move as “completely unjustified.”

He said, “For the union to choose this path at the very start of the holy month of Ramadan and inflict more discomfort on hapless Nigerians by embarking on an ill-advised strike and forcing staff from carrying out their legitimate duties says a lot about its motive.”

Abdulazeez disclosed that the union’s demand for payment of outstanding pension arrears “is part of the historic debts accumulated under two previous managements.

“One wonders why the union failed to prioritise the payments then until now. This is a clear indication that the union has other motives yet unknown to us.”