Lawrence Nwimo, Awka
Electricity Workers under the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) have staged protests at Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) offices in the South-East region.
At the Zonal Headquarters in Awka, workers barricaded the premises and caused traffic disruptions as they demanded the release of colleagues held in detention at the Armed Robbery Unit of the Nigerian Police in Awkuzu.
The protesters carried placards of which read: “Unilateral stoppage of staff Medical, No promotion for years, Late payment of salary” among others, even though they said the protest was about intimidation of their members by EEDC using Police.
The union called for application of internal process of dealing with infraction issues as provided in the Conditions of Service.
Engr. Sir Joe Oforka, Deputy President South of NUEE, expressed dissatisfaction with the treatment of workers by the EEDC management. The union accused the company of collaborating with the police to harass, arrest, and detain workers under false charges.
He said despite appeals for the release of the detained workers and calls for internal resolution of issues, the EEDC management has not taken any action.
He said union leaders have called for a peaceful protest until their colleagues are released and measures are put in place to prevent further mistreatment of workers.
Engr. Sir Joe Oforka warned that if the detained workers are not released and an agreement is not reached with the management to address the situation, the protests will escalate.
