Nationwide blackout as electricity workers shut down national grid

Electricity workers at the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) have shut down the national grid following the declaration of an indefinite strike by organized labour unions.

The company’s spokesperson, Ndidi Mbah, confirmed the shut down of the national grid on Tuesday.

Ndidi noted that electricity workers, the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), followed directives of the Nigeria Labour Congress to withdraw their services.

“Electricity workers are NLC members; they’ve followed the directive by organized labour to withdraw their services from Tuesday,” she stated.

The NLC, Trade Union Congress (TUC) and its affiliates including the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), on Tuesday, began a nationwide strike, in defiance to a restraining court order barring them from embarking on the industrial action.

The two major labour unions, NLC and TUC, had declared the strike, following the brutalisation of the NLC president, Joe Ajaero, in Imo State on 1 November.

Ajaero was attacked in Owerri, the state capital, during an NLC protest against the Imo State government over alleged maltreatment of workers in the state.

The unions on Monday directed their members to down tools across the country as from Tuesday.

This is despite the restraining order issued by the National Industrial Court, in Abuja, last Friday, stopping the labour unions from embarking on the strike.

The interim order issued by the court followed an ex-parte request by the Federal Government through the office of Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, due to the Labour unions’ threat to embark on strike.