BREAKING: Wike Seeks Court Order to Jail FCT Union Leaders
The Wike seeks to jail FCT workers controversy escalated sharply this week as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, approached the National Industrial Court in Abuja, seeking a committal order against union leaders over the ongoing strike by FCT workers.
Through his legal team, the FCT minister obtained and served Form 48, a statutory notice warning of the consequences of disobeying a court order, on leaders of the Joint Union Action Congress. The move followed the union’s decision to resume its indefinite strike on January 29, 2026, despite an interlocutory injunction issued two days earlier by Justice Emmanuel Danjuma Sublimi directing workers to suspend all industrial action.
Wike, represented by lead counsel Dr Ogwu James Onoja SAN, argued that the continued strike by employees of the Federal Capital Territory Administration and the Federal Capital Development Authority amounted to an outright disregard for the authority of the court. Although workers initially indicated plans to return to duty, the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress later directed members to continue the shutdown, further intensifying the dispute.
The legal action quickly widened beyond the JUAC leadership to include the leadership of organised labour at the national level. The Form 48 notice, signed by the court registrar, warned JUAC President Rifkatu Iortyer and Secretary Abdullahi Saleh that failure to comply with the January 27 court order could result in imprisonment for contempt.
In a related ruling on February 2, 2026, Justice Sublimi granted a fresh interim order restraining the NLC and TUC from proceeding with a planned mass protest in Abuja. The court also directed security agencies to prevent any breakdown of law and order around government secretariats in the capital.
The unions, through their counsel Femi Falana SAN, argued that they had filed an appeal against the court’s ruling. However, Wike’s legal team countered that filing an appeal does not automatically suspend the enforcement of a valid court order.
The strike, which began on January 19, 2026, severely disrupted essential services across the Federal Capital Territory. Health centres and primary schools were largely shut, refuse piled up across major districts, and administrative operations at FCTA and FCDA offices in Garki and Area 11 ground to a halt. Union task forces enforced strict compliance, ensuring civil servants stayed away from their duty posts.
The workers say the strike was triggered by unresolved welfare issues, including five months of unpaid wage awards, promotion arrears, and the non remittance of pension and National Housing Fund deductions.
In a dramatic overnight development on Tuesday, February 4, 2026, a marathon peace meeting convened by Senate Committee on FCT Chairman Mohammed Bomoi produced a breakthrough. The three hour meeting involved Wike, NLC President Joe Ajaero, and TUC leaders and resulted in a tentative truce.
According to sources familiar with the talks, the FCT minister assured labour leaders that no worker would be victimised for participating in the strike. In return, the unions agreed to withdraw all pending court cases and appeals connected to the dispute.
Following the agreement, the NLC and TUC directed all FCTA workers to immediately resume duty, effectively ending the standoff and halting the looming threat of imprisonment for union leaders.
While the immediate crisis has eased, the confrontation has highlighted the tense state of industrial relations in the nation’s capital and reinforced Wike’s hardline approach to governance. As workers return to their offices, attention now shifts to whether the FCT Administration will meet its commitment to clear salary arrears by April, a key condition for preventing a fresh round of unrest.