Four Northern States Thrown Into Darkness As Kaduna Electric Workers Embark On Strike

Residents of Kaduna, Sokoto, Zamfara, and Kebbi states have been kept in darkness due to a fresh strike action by the Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO) workers.

Naija News reports that the workers, organized under the Nigerian Union of Electricity Employees, went on an indefinite strike on Tuesday to protest what they perceived to be unfair treatment by the company’s management.

According to reports, the workers were displeased with a number of issues, including DisCo’s refusal to pay six years’ worth of unpaid pensions, the company’s failure to pay the death benefits of its deceased employees, the unjust dismissal of seven Zaria-based employees, and an alleged plan to fire over a thousand employees.

However, the Kaduna Disco management, in a statement released by Head of Corporate Communication Abdulazeez Abdullahi, denounced the strike, calling it “completely unjustified.”

Abdulazeez 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.”

According to Abdulazeez, the union’s request for the repayment of unpaid pension arrears “is part of the historic debts accumulated under two previous management.”

“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,” he added.