The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and Trade Union Congress, TUC, blocked both the entry and exit of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on Thursday.
The protesters attempted to enter the airport but were stopped at the checkpoint by the military.
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Angered by the refusal, the protesters blocked the airport’s entry and exit points, causing heavy vehicular traffic on both sides.
Travelers were forced to start making their way into the airport on foot.
UNITY TIMES recalls that following the NLC’s directive, unions in the aviation industry on Wednesday directed the withdrawal of all flights to Owerri from all airports across the country.
The NLC and TUC had declared a nationwide strike following the brutalization of the NLC President, Joe Ajaero, in Imo last week.
In response to the directive for shutdown, the aviation unions, including the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), the Association of Nigerian Aviation Professionals (ANAP), the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), and the National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE), had blacklisted and suspended flights to Imo State.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian government has deployed a contingent of soldiers, police personnel, and operatives from other security agencies to disperse Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) members at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.
At the protest scene, union members sang and chanted, displaying banners with messages like ‘We Stand With Oppressed Imo State Workers – An Injury To One Is An Injury To All.’
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