Kogi Govt. Makes U-turn on Planned Payment of Four Months Salaries

…to pay only one month now, others through table payment.

…labour frowns at govt. refusal, would make position known.

TheNigerianPost reports that the  joy that greeted the announcement that Kogi State Workers would get three and four months salaries to MDA’s and Tertiary institutions is now dashed as the government has made a U- turn.

Information available to The Nigerian Post points to the fact that rather than expecting alerts, workers would be made to undergo the process of been paid manually using table payment.

According to The Nigerian Post source, disclosed that the government is not comfortable with the N2.8billion monthly wage bill it is paying, hopes to use the table payment to ascertain the State actual wage bill.

The organized labour in the state is startled by the present action of government, said the plan table payment should be after it has successfully reached an agreement, and was only waiting for alert to now be told of table payment.

The organized labours in the state had always frowned at the figures brandished by the Kogi State Government that it wage bill is N2.8billion even when a substantial number of workers had been screened out or disengaged from the civil service. The State labour Chairman, Com. Onuh Edoka, stated this when he led a protest march as part activities by labour to ask for a new minimum wage.

According to Edoka, if the immediate past administration of Capt Idris Wada left a wage bill of N2.6billion which include salaries of all those sacked or relieved from service by the present administration and monthly impress to offices, disagreed with the new government brandished figure of N2.8billion.

The labour Union is now at a loss why the state government now consider it apt to ascertain the amount it is paying as salary only when the state had received a tranche of Paris club refunds with workers waiting for payment.

All argument by labour that Kogi workers have gone through untold hardship occasioned by non payment of salaries could not sway government thinking, with the governor insisting that he will only pay a months salaries, while the remaining earlier agreed upon would be paid through table payment.

For now Kogi State Workers would have to wait longer than expected to get their outstanding arrears paid with the new government plan, which is an upset, likely to add more health challenge to workers whose blood pressure has risen while awaiting alerts.

The Nigerian Labour Congress Kogi State Chapter is yet to make an official statement, but the Nigerian Post Findings reveals that the organized labour would come up with a position on the new government action on reneging on earlier agreement.

The decision to release the Paris club refunds to the Kogi state government was after an approval by the organized labour from the national and state, with the amount agreed for the money to be paid into the state government salary account.

There is however the fears in many quarters that as had been the case with past bailouts, the delay in the payment of the present amount released for workers may also develop wings at the expense of the real workers the money it is meant for.