Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai has on Tuesday ordered the sack of all nurses in the state below Grade Level 14 and lecturers of Kaduna State University (KASU) for joining the ongoing warning strike.
He vowed they will be prosecuted, accusing them of unwanton destruction of public properties and disruption of peace.
Their actions, according to the Governor, were equivalent to the actions of bandits terrorising the state.
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The 5-day warning strike is to push the state government to reverse its decision to sack thousands of workers.
The strike followed the disengagement of at least 4,000 workers across the 23 LGAs by Nasir el-Rufai, who cited the state’s high wage bill as the reason.
Muyiwa Adekeye, the governor’s spokesperson, in a statement on Tuesday, accused the union of sabotage and lawlessness.
He said the government will dismiss nurses below grade level 14, and academic staff members of the State University.
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Rufai also likened the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) leaders who coordinated the ongoing strike and shutdown of the state to bandits.
The statement reads;
Efforts to dress up criminal activity as industrial action do not change the reality of the lawbreaking that has unfolded, including their persistently ignoring the prohibition against impeding essential services. Also, KDSG cannot ignore the illegal pressures brought to disrupt the operations of banks and other private businesses whose staff and customers do not have any industrial dispute with the state or any other government.
KDSG acknowledges doctors and some other categories of health workers that are trying to run public health facilities, but regrets that some nurses have joined the unlawful strike and engaged in sabotage of some of our health facilities. Nurses were implicated in the forceful discharge of patients in many health facilities.
It added;
The Ministry of Health will dismiss all nurses below GL14 for going on an unlawful strike. Salaries that could have gone to them are to be given as extraordinary occupational allowances to the health workers who are at their duty posts to fill the gap of those absconding from duty. The Ministry of Health has been directed to advertise vacancies for the immediate recruitment of new nurses to replace those dismissed.
Any academic staff of KASU that does not report for work will be dismissed. The authorities of KASU are to submit a copy of the attendance register for all categories of staff daily to the Secretary to the State Government and the Commissioner of Education.
All MDAs are also to submit daily copies of attendance register to the Head of Service.
The spokesman expressed;
KDSG views the actions of the NLC as equivalent to the actions of the bandits kidnapping and menacing our citizens. Bandits illegally use arms, but the NLC is deploying mob action for exactly the same ends: trying to hold hostage the freedoms, economic interests, livelihoods and resources of the people of Kaduna State.
He added that it is a vain expectation that the Kaduna government will respond differently to sets of “unlawful actions” that have the same ends.
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Earlier, the governor declared Ayuba Wabba, president of NLC, and other members of the union wanted for economic sabotage.
The union leaders have also been advised to report at the state’s ministry of justice to make their statements.
