The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) FCT Council has directed all workers under the FCT Administration, including those in the private sector, to begin an indefinite strike from Wednesday, October 7, 2026. The directive follows the expiry of a seven-day ultimatum issued to FCT Minister Nyesom Wike over unresolved disputes affecting teachers. Council Chairman Knabayi Adalo announced the decision in a communique released after an emergency State Executive Council meeting, as reported by Vanguard.
Why the Strike Was Declared
The industrial action became unavoidable after the FCT Administration failed to adequately address the union's demands, according to Adalo. Among the core demands is the scrapping of a vacancy precondition that Adalo said had stalled teachers' career progression and caused widespread demoralisation within the profession. The union also called for the immediate reversal of redeployment and demotion letters issued to directors in Education Secretariat agencies who benefited from the Harmonised Retirement Age for Teachers Act, 2022.
Additional demands included allowing 2025-eligible teachers to sit promotion exams alongside the 2026 batch, and the dissolution and reinstatement of management teams at both the FCT Secondary Education Board and the FCT Universal Basic Education Board.
Government Response Rejected
The FCT Administration had responded through the Head of the Civil Service, Mrs Nancy Nathan, in a letter dated September 29, 2026. Nathan wrote that Wike had directed a stay of action and asked that the issues be stepped down, while the FCT Civil Service Commission was told to reschedule the 2025 promotion exam for affected education officers. The letter also expressed the minister's commitment to resolving other outstanding concerns.
Adalo, however, rejected that response, saying it completely overlooked the illegal redeployment of senior directors and offered no real solution to the vacancy clause dispute. He described the administration's position as "neither positive nor clear nor genuine" and said it was therefore "dismissive and unacceptable."
What the Strike Means for FCT
Adalo directed that all schools, hospitals, offices and government establishments across the FCT remain shut until every union demand is met. He also instructed affiliate industrial unions in both the public and private sectors to enforce full compliance among their members. Special enforcement committees are being set up across sectors to monitor adherence to the strike directive.
Adalo assured workers that no one would face punishment for taking part in the action, which he described as a legitimate exercise of workers' rights. "The council will no longer tolerate the continued dehumanisation of FCT teachers through obnoxious policies alien to the teaching profession," Adalo said. The indefinite strike is set to continue until all union demands are fully addressed by the FCT Administration.
