FocalPoint Reports

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on Wednesday shut down offices of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) across Abuja, Kogi, Nasarawa and Niger states, protesting the mass disengagement of over 900 workers.  The electricity distribution company’s headquarters in Abuja, as well as offices in parts of the Federal Capital Territory and branches in Kogi, Minna (Niger State), and Nasarawa, were under lock and key as of Wednesday morning. The action marks an escalation of the dispute between organised labour and the management of the power firm. The shutdown comes barely 24 hours after the NLC, led by its President,  Joe Ajaero,  picketed the company’s headquarters in Abuja over what it described as a controversial and unjust sack of workers. The union had earlier expressed outrage over the development, insisting that due process was not followed and that the disengagement violated earlier agreements reached with management. Speaking on the crisis, Ajaero said the ...

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), South-South Zone, has expressed dissatisfaction over the worsening electricity supply to tertiary institutions across Delta State. The association said the situation has negatively affected academic activities and the welfare of students, describing the development as unacceptable. In a letter addressed to the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), the zonal coordinator of NANS South-South, Comrade Victor Ogechukwu Anthony, alleged that reports from campuses across the state indicated persistent outages and poor service delivery. The letter, titled: ‘Urgent notice of discontent: Unacceptable epileptic power supply and fraudulent estimated billing across Delta State campuses’, was issued from the NANS Zone B Secretariat in Ogwashi-Uku. Anthony noted that many students have been subjected to weeks of epileptic or near-zero electricity supply, yet continue to rece...