Members of the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government-Owned Companies (SSASCGOC) have shut down and picketed the headquarters of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) in Abuja over allegations of anti-union activities, interference in the association’s internal affairs and suppression of workers’ rights by the council’s Director-General, Nnayelugo Martins Ikemounso.
The aggrieved workers barricaded the entrance to the council’s headquarters, preventing movement in and out of the premises and bringing official activities to a standstill as they pressed for the immediate resolution of their grievances.
The protesters accused the council’s management of deliberately frustrating the operations of their union, interfering in its internal administration and denying eligible senior officers the freedom to join and participate in its activities.
Among their major demands is the immediate remittance of all outstanding check-off dues deducted from members’ salaries since August 2026.
They also demanded formal recognition of SSASCGOC by the council’s management, protection of the rights of eligible senior officers to freely belong to the association and an immediate end to what they described as management’s interference in the union’s internal affairs.
Addressing the protesting workers, the Acting General Secretary of SSASCGOC, Comrade Akin Okudero, declared that the association would sustain the industrial action and continue occupying the council’s premises until management addressed its demands.
Okudero also called for the removal of the Director-General, accusing him of refusing to recognise SSASCGOC while allegedly favouring another labour organisation within the council for personal interests.
He maintained that the union had made several attempts to resolve the disagreement through dialogue but was left with no option other than industrial action following the alleged failure of management to respond to its complaints.
According to him, the association had provided management with sufficient opportunities to address the issues before commencing the picketing exercise.
“We met with management, but the management continues to manipulate us by suppressing the rights of our members in this organisation.
“We gave them adequate notice. We issued a seven-day notice, which elapsed, and gave them another week to see if there would be any response, but they did not respond.
“We subsequently served them a three-day notice of picketing, and today we are here.
“The argument is that the Director-General is not appreciating the sacrifices of the workers or respecting the rights of the union and its members. He has been suppressing and harassing our members, and we want to say enough is enough,” Okudero said.
The union leader further accused the Director-General of failing to recognise the contributions of workers to the council’s operations, alleging that his actions had undermined their legitimate labour rights and weakened the association’s ability to function independently.
Police officers were deployed to the council’s headquarters to maintain law and order as the protest continued.
However, the workers maintained that the presence of security personnel would not discourage them from pursuing their demands, insisting that the industrial action would continue until the management addressed the issues raised by the association.
The picketing followed the alleged failure of the RMRDC management to resolve the union’s grievances despite a seven-working-day ultimatum reportedly issued on September 23, 2026.
In a circular dated November 6, 2026, with reference number SSASCGOC/CIR/Vol. 1/2026, the association disclosed that it had issued a final three-day notice of picketing to the council’s Director-General.
The notice preceded the mobilisation of members to the RMRDC headquarters, where the workers subsequently barricaded the facility and commenced the industrial action.
The dispute has centred on the union’s demand for recognition, the remittance of deducted check-off dues and the freedom of eligible senior employees to participate in its activities without alleged interference from management.
Efforts to obtain the Director-General’s response to the allegations were unsuccessful, as his whereabouts could not be immediately established as of the time of filing this report.
The allegations against the Director-General had yet to receive an official response from the council’s management as of press time.