Nationwide strike obstructs court activities in Abuja, Lagos

In compliance with the onslaught by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), entrances to Lagos High Court, Ikeja, Igbosere and Ogba Magistrate courts were unopen yesterday. 

The Guardian learnt the commencement of the nationwide concern onslaught affected different Lagos courts successful Epe, Badagry, Yaba arsenic good astatine the tribunal sitting astatine Osborne, Ikoyi.
 
The Federal High Court sitting successful Ikoyi, Lagos, was nether fastener and key. But the Lagos Division of Court of Appeal opened and immoderate of the tribunal had begun sitting earlier proceeding was stopped abruptly.
 
Labour national members went to the premises of the appellate court, and demanded full compliance with the onslaught enactment and astatine 11:20 successful the morning, litigants, lawyers and workers near the premises.

The gates were unopen by the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN), Ikeja branch, arsenic lawyers and litigants were turned backmost from entering the tribunal premises.
 
The onslaught enforcers urged those, who tried to summation entranceway into the tribunal premises, to comply with the order, arsenic courts were unopen successful strict compliance with JUSUN order.

On June 1, JUSUN had, successful a statement, notified its members of indefinite nationwide onslaught owed to inconclusive determination connected the caller minimum wage. The statement, which was signed by the acting General Secretary of JUSUN, M.J. Akwashiki, said the strike action would commencement midnight connected Sunday and that each branches of the national were expected to guarantee strict compliance to the directive.
 
The connection read:  “All vice presidents of our large unions are to show their respective zones to guarantee compliance with full unopen down of each courts and judicial institutes crossed Nigeria.”

Similarly, gates to Federal High Court headquarters, Federal Capital Territory High Court, Maitama, Abuja and the Court of Appeal’s office successful Abuja were each closed and blocked by civilian servants to lawyers and litigants. 

The Guardian observed that astir the premises of the court, lawyers and litigants were seen stranding, portion those who made efforts to entree the tribunal were stopped by the authoritative of judiciary union.

Consequently, each pending cases scheduled for yesterday were stalled.  The enforcement of the Judiciary unit Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) were astatine the gates enforcing orders of their association.

MEANWHILE, erstwhile The Guardian visited the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), it was discovered that that the onslaught disrupted objective services, arsenic lone exigency cases were attended to astatine the Medical and Surgical Emergency Department. 

Members of the wellness unions, successful compliance with the directive from their nationalist bodies, had earlier gone astir the wellness facility, driving the unit retired of the offices.
 
Patients and their relatives were seen complaining astir the situation, with immoderate readying connected transferring their loved ones to backstage wellness facilities. 
A idiosyncratic successful the infirmary said: “The doctors near aboriginal due to the fact that of the onslaught and lone exigency cases are being attended to. They are observing the onslaught and relatives person taken distant their sick.