Power outage in Kaduna as NLC begins warning strike over workers’ sack

The management of Kaduna Electric says the current power outage in the state is as a result of the five-day warning strike embarked upon by labour unions.

Abdulazeez Abdullahi, the company’s head of corporate communications, said the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) disconnected the power supply in compliance with the strike.

In April, Nasir el-Rufai, Kaduna governor, disengaged 4,000 workers across the 23 LGAs of the state, citing the state’s high wage bill as reason.

But the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) kicked against the move and resolved to ground activities with a warning strike starting from Sunday.

In a statement on Sunday, Abdullahi urged residents to be wary of criminals who may want to take advantage of the blackout as an avenue to vandalise power supply installations.

“In compliance with the NLC directive, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, has knocked off all our 33KV lines in Kaduna State,” Abdullahi said.

“Consequently, we are appealing to all communities, security agencies and vigilante groups to be vigilant so that men of the underworld will not cash in on the situation to vandalise power supply installations.

“Any suspicious movement around distribution sub-stations (transformers) should be reported to the relevant security agency.”

The aviation workers had also threatened to withdraw their services at the Kaduna airport during the strike, while the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) directed its members to halt their services in the state.

On Sunday, Jafaru Sani, Kaduna commissioner of local government, and Bariatu Mohammed, head of service, said the state’s high wage bill was not sustainable.

“This government was not elected to devote most public funds to paying government workers and treat that as its defining governance mission, to the detriment of developing the state and its people,” they had said.