Nigeria Labour Congress Condemns Police Restrictions on Universities’ Non-Teaching Staff

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has strongly condemned the restriction by the Nigeria Police Force on a peaceful protest by the non-teaching staff unions in Nigerian universities.

According to a statement by Benson Upah, the NLC spokesman, on Thursday in Abuja, the protest was restricted by the police to prevent non-teaching staff unions in Nigerian universities from carrying out their planned street protests in Abuja over four withheld salaries and other sundry issues.

Upah explained that the reason for the protest was that the unions, including the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), had exhausted all means to get their salaries paid after workers in other unions were paid for the same strike action.

However, the police restricted the protesters to the Unity Fountain, where they had gathered to begin moving to the Ministries of Education, and Labour and Employment to submit their letters to the ministers. The Commissioner of Police for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Beneth Igwe, claimed the restrictions were necessary for security reasons.

In his reaction, Upah described the police behavior as an affront to the 1999 Constitution (as amended), International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions 87 and 98, and the African Charter on Peoples and Human Rights, which guarantee freedom of association and speech.

He also emphasized that the police’s action violates the Supreme Court ruling that citizens do not need a permit or approval to protest peacefully. Upah called on the police to apologize to NASU and SSANU members, while also demanding the immediate payment of withheld salaries.

“If government continues to ignore our wise counsel, it will court a major national industrial protest,” he said.