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Workers Begin 3-Day Protest Over ‘Poor Welfare, Stalled Promotions’ In FCT

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Workers Begin 3-Day Protest

Workers Begin 3-Day Protest Over ‘Poor Welfare, Stalled Promotions’ In FCT

Workers begin 3-day protest over ‘poor welfare, stalled promotions’ in FCT. Workers under the Joint Union Action Committee (JUAC) have shut the gate of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) secretariat in protest over poor welfare conditions.

Rifkatu Iortyer, the JUAC president, said the action was prompted by the non-payment of overheads since December 2024, lack of staff training, and stagnation in career progression.

She listed irregular salary payments, unresolved strikes by primary healthcare workers and teachers, and unpaid casual staff as additional grievances.

The JUAC president acknowledged Nyesom Wike, minister of the FCT, for initiating far-reaching reforms aimed at repositioning the administration.

She commended Wike for establishing the FCT civil service commission, which she said has opened the path for career advancement up to permanent secretary level.

However, Iortyer noted that workers’ welfare had deteriorated despite the reforms.

“We are protesting for so many things and we are not happy over a lot of things,” NAN quoted Iortyer as saying.

“We no longer go on training anymore; from December last year, there was no overhead to run the offices. We go from office to office to borrow paper to work.

“No promotion since clearing of the backlog the Wike-led administration met in August 2023. Since that time, there’s been no promotion, only appointments of permanent secretaries.”

The JUAC president also said casual workers in agencies like the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) have not been paid since December 2024.

“They may not be career civil servants but they are the ones that sweep the streets; they are the ones that attend to the cemetery; and they are the ones that attend to the mortuary,” she said.

“Yes, we don’t have casual workers in career civil service but we already have them and then you say you will not pay them?
“If the FCTA doesn’t want casual workers then it should absorb them because they are humans and have families to feed.”

Workers Begin 3-Day Protest

Workers Begin 3-Day Protest

While noting that primary education falls under the jurisdiction of area councils, the JUAC president asked Wike to intervene in the lingering teachers’ strike.

She said the protest would continue for three days, after which workers would reconvene to decide on their next steps if no action is taken.

Abuja

Wike Orders ‘Heightened’ Security In FCT, Reactivates ‘Operation Sweep’

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FCT Traders Decry High Shop Rent

Wike Orders ‘Heightened’ Security In FCT, Reactivates ‘Operation Sweep’

Wike orders ‘heightened’ security in FCT, reactivates ‘operation sweep’. Nyesom Wike, minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has directed security agencies to intensify surveillance and strengthen security operations across Abuja, the nation’s capital, as part of renewed efforts to curb criminal activities in the territory.

Speaking on Tuesday at the formal resumption of “Operation Sweep”, Miller Dantawaye, FCT commissioner of police, said the minister had provided the logistics and operational support required for the exercise.

Dantawaye said the operation is being carried out by a joint security team comprising the military, the police, the Department of State Services (DSS) and other agencies already deployed across strategic locations in the capital city.
The police commissioner said the team has been tasked with working more aggressively to prevent kidnappings, banditry and other crimes, especially as the festive season draws nearer.

He added that service chiefs and the inspector-general of police (IGP) have also granted full approval for the renewed operation.
“The FCT minister, His Excellency Nyesom Wike, has given complete support, especially in terms of logistics for this operation,” Dantawaye said.

“By the time we leave here today, the funds for fuelling and servicing of vehicles, as well as allowances for personnel, will have dropped into an account we can access.”

Operation Sweep

Operation Sweep

Dantawaye also said part of the renewed operation will focus on profiling individuals loitering around the city under the guise of begging, noting that some of them have been found to engage in criminal activities.
“We know that amongst the people who claim to be beggars, some are not exactly beggars. Most come with criminal intent,” he said.
“We are going to profile them and take off the streets those who are criminally minded, even if they claim to be beggars.”

He added that the police will work with relevant agencies, including the Abuja environmental protection board (AEPB), to determine the appropriate legal steps to manage street begging and ensure overall safety in the city.

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Abuja

Army Bosses To Wike: “The Soldier’s Reaction Is The Courage Of A Disciplined Soldier”

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Army Bosses To Wike

Army Bosses To Wike: “The Soldier’s Reaction Is The Courage Of A Disciplined Soldier”

Army Bosses to Wike: “The Soldier’s reaction is the courage of a disciplined soldier”. Here is the view of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) about the stand-off between Wike and Yerima in Abuja.

“Every soldier has an element of madness…
For while the right thinking man withdraws from danger, a soldier charges towards it

GENERAL OO OLUYEDE OFR

CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF”.

The Nigerian Defence Academy does not produce docile officers. The officer’s response reflects admirable composure and emotional intelligence-qualities that lie at the heart of military leadership training.

His ability to remain calm, firm, and respectful under verbal provocation demonstrates discipline and professionalism.

Army Bosses To Wike

Army Bosses To Wike

Nevertheless, it is both unfortunate and inappropriate for a federal minister to use such language toward a serving officer of the Armed Forces.

Public officials should model civility and restraint, especially when addressing those in uniform who embody national service and sacrifice”.

Notwithstanding, the case is subject to my scrutiny.

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Abuja

Orji Kalu Backs Trump, Says “Nigerian Christians Subjected To ‘Mass Slaughter’ By Jihadists”

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Orji Kalu Says

Orji Kalu Backs Trump, Says “Nigerian Christians Subjected To ‘Mass Slaughter’ By Jihadists”

Orji Kalu backs Trump, says “Nigerian Christians subjected to ‘mass slaughter’ by Jihadists”. Senator Orji Kalu has backed American President Donald Trump’s allegation that Christians in Nigeria are being targeted for massacre by “Jihadists”.

Senator Orji Kalu has backed American President Donald Trump’s allegation that Christians in Nigeria are being targeted for massacre by “Jihadists”.

Mr Kalu made this statement when asked on Tuesday at the National Assembly about his take on Mr Trump’s recent comments on alleged Christian genocide in the country.

“What Donald Trump said, “is it a lie? It is not a lie because Donald Trump said the Truth,” replied Mr Kalu.
In a social media post in October, Mr Trump said, “Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter. I am hereby making Nigeria a ‘COUNTRY OF PARTICULAR CONCERN’ — But that is the least of it.”

The senator noted, however, that “Nigerians are being killed, whether they are Christians or Muslims”.

“If they (terrorists) kill in Plateau, those they kill are Christians. If they go to Benue, the majority of people they’ll kill are Christians,” explained the former Abia governor. “If they go to Zamfara, the people they will kill in the mosque are Muslims. These people are jihadists. These people just want to destroy Nigeria. We should blacklist them without pity so that they will be smoked out.”

Mr Kalu added, “Before President Trump says a word, the American intelligence community must have found out where these terrorists are located. You can see that the Nigerian Air Force is already acting, possibly using information shared by the U.S. to bomb terrorist hideouts. That’s how it should be.”

Orji Kalu Says

Orji Kalu Says

Following up on his initial post, the U.S. president said, “If the Nigerian government continues to allow the k1lling of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.

“I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians! WARNING: THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT BETTER MOVE FAST!”

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