Police teargass journalists in Kaduna for covering protest
By; Ojo Shola, Kaduna
Journalists, who went to cover peaceful protest embarked upon by dismissed casual workers of Kaduna Electric on Tuesday received the shock of their lives when men of Kaduna Police Command teargassed them together with protesters despite having knowledge of their presence.
Casual workers have alleged that Kaduna Electric, a subsidiary of Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO), asked them to go after working between last two and three months without payment.
According to protesting dismissed workers, the recruitment exercise the company recently carried out was politicized as people without any formal experience were given consideration instead of engaging the casual workers some of whom have been with the company for 15 years.
A protester, Abdul Attah, told this correspondent that they are ready to go, “but let them pay us our money.”
He said, “we are casuals. They tell us to go without a reason. Some of us have been here for 15 years now. We worked for three months and get dismissal without payment. Afterall, they gave us casual appointment letter. Let them pay us what they are owing us.”
Another protester, Musa Abubakar, alleged that the new owner of KEDC bought the company without knowing the burden it was bearing thereby making them confused on what to do.
Musa further alleged that the top management preferred to bring their children and their friends to come and takeover their jobs without considerations.
They however called on federal government, Kaduna government and other relevant authorities to review the process that led to the privatization of the company.
Efforts to speak with Mallam Idris Abdull-Azeez of Corporate Communication department of Kaduna Electric for clarification on the allegation were unsuccessful as he did not respond to several phone calls put through to him.
