THE Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN), on Monday, commenced a nationwide protest in Abuja, demanding financial autonomy from the executive arm of government.
Some of the protesting union members were seen at the gate of the Appeal Court on Monday morning with placards.
‘The three arms of government are equal partners,’ ‘Governors should obey the constitution and court order,” some of their placards read.
The Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) also marched with the protesting union to the National Assembly Complex, but they were refused entrance.
Chairman of the NBA Olumide Akpata had asked all state chapters to march in solidarity with the judiciary workers to government houses to help propagate their demands.
However, the NBA were also refused entrance into the Ekiti State Government House on Monday by security operatives.
The judiciary workers had commenced an indefinite strike over the failure of state assemblies to implement financial autonomy for judicial workers at state levels.
Last week, the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) and Conference of Speakers of State Assemblies had appealed to the leadership of the judiciary workers to call off the strike.
Governor of Sokoto State Aminu Tambuwal, who is also Deputy Chairman of the NGF, said plans were being fine-tuned to meet the demands of the workers.
“We’ve just finished talking to the speakers, and indeed the state chief judges and the judiciary to continue to engage. The Minister of Labour is also engaging with the striking bodies to appeal to them, to appreciate the fact that we have made progress,” Tambuwal said.
“We’re appealing to them in the interest of this country that they should call off the strike,” Tambuwal further said.
The battle between the federal, state governments and judicial workers has lingeree since 2015 when JUSUN embarked on three weeks’ strike to protest the non-implementation of financial autonomy.
Lukman Abolade is an Investigative reporter with The ICIR. Reach out to him via labolade@icirnigeria.org, on twitter @AboladeLAA and FB @Correction94