Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria in Ekiti State, on Wednesday agreed to suspend its seven months old strike after a peace-deal meeting with Governor Ayodele Fayose, with a promise to reopen courts on Monday.
The union had been on strike demanding for improved welfare packages for its members, which led to closure of all the state-controlled courts.
The suspension of the strike followed a marathon meeting among Fayose, the Nigerian Bar Association and the leadership of the union on Wednesday.
At a press conference jointly addressed by the parties in Ado Ekiti, Fayose thanked the union for its understanding in resolving the crisis, promising to meet all their needs as soon as the finances of the State improved.
He said, “After a meeting with JUSUN and NBA, we all came to terms that we have a lot of issues to settle in the judiciary. But we explained to the leadership about the poor financial state of Ekiti for now. We also assured them that some of their demands, if not all, will be met as soon as things get better.
“We are pleading to all judiciary workers to show understanding. We are not unaware of the fact that a lot of damage must have been done after seven months of closure, so we plead with the judicial officers to expedite actions to make up for the lost grounds.
“We have resolved the matter peacefully and I believe that every stakeholder will fulfill his own part of the pact.”
Fayose lauded the NBA for its intervention and working hard to resolve the issue, saying his government would continue to embark on policies that will promote justice and the rule of law in the State.
The JUSUN’s Chairman, Mr Niyi Ogundare, lamented that the strike had crippled the activities of lawyers in the State since it started .
“ Even the prisoners, whose cases have not been heard or were adjourned before the strike will be expecting their cases to be reopened and probably given expeditious hearing. We have a lot to do in this regard.
“The money accruing to the State is so lean that it could hardly pay salaries. We are going to meet with our people to explain this to them and we are optimistic that they will show understanding .
“We will explain to them the poor finances vis-à-vis how far we have gone about our agitation for autonomy and by the grace of God the Courts shall be reopened on Monday,” he assured.
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