Pensioners, workers protest in Ondo over non payment of salary, pensions

ONDO State civil service workers and pensioners under the aegis of Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), on Tuesday, grounded activities at the state secretariat, protesting over the insensitivity of the state government to the plight of the workers and the pensioners in the state.

The two groups who arrived at the governor’s office in Alagbaka, Akure, as early as 8 am defied the downpour, blocking the major road leading to the governor’s office, chanting anti-government songs and prevented workers from gaining entrance into their offices.

While the pensioners frowned over the non- payment of their gratuities and pensions for over six years, the workers alleged the state government of withholding and planning to divert the Paris Club loan refund by the Federal government to a fixed bank account

The pensioners, armed with placards of various inscriptions such as “Arakunrin Akeredolu must pay our entitlements”, “we are dying”, “pensioners deserve better treatment from Ondo government”, “Akeredolu fulfils your promise to pensioners”, “Arakunrin must implement 33% pension increase approved by the federal government since 2014,” among others.

The pensioners who demanded the payment of the accumulated arrears of pension and gratuities, issued a 15-day ultimatum to the state governor, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, to meet their demands or should be ready to host them at the government house as long as the state government can pay them.

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Speaking on behalf of the pensioners, the Chairman of the NUP, Chief Raphael Adetuwo said the state government was owing the pensioners about N43b since 2012 till date, saying the union has lost a number of pensioners to hunger.

Adetuwo urged the state government to use the last tranche of Paris Club debt refund paid to the Ondo state government to settle outstanding workers’ salaries, pensions and gratuities as directed by President Muhammadu Buhari.

He said: “If President Buhari saw salaries and pensions as means of livelihood and if hr rightly doled out Paris club loan refund to the state governors to enhance immediate payment of salaries and pensions, such money should be used for the purpose.”

According to him, Governor Akeredolu had refused to attend to the retirees’ demands by the end of this month, they would be forced to relocate from their homes and occupy the governor’s office permanently.

Chief Adetuwo said, “my members called me for a meeting in Akure south local government that they will embark on street protest to let our governor know their plight. We can’t continue to keep quiet, the outstanding gratuities are getting too much, the government must do something to start paying deserving pensioners.”

The NUP chairman who accused the state government of shirking away from financial responsibilities on gratuities payment, urged the labour leadership to come to their rescue, adding that old age hazards and health challenges were bitter experiences among pensioners.

Similarly, workers in the State lambasted the state government over an alleged withholding of Paris Club refund released to it by the federal government with the aim of diverting the fund.

The workers union which consisted of the leadership of the Council of the Nigeria Labour Congress, (NLC), the Trade Union Congress, (TUC) and the Joint Negotiating Council, (JNC) blocked the main entrance of the governor’s office for several hours after a prayer session.

Addressing the workers, the NLC chairman, Comrade Tayo Ogunleye, TUC Chairman, Comrade Soladoye Ekundayo and JNC Chairman Comrade Abel Oloniyo lamented over the failure of the state government to pay outstanding salaries and pensions of workers and pensioners as directed by the federal government.

The workers threatened to resume at the entrance of the state secretariat office on a daily basis until government settle the accumulated salaries and pensions’ arrears with the debt refund paid by the Federal government.

Ogunleye said: “It is no more news that the federal government had released the last tranche of the Paris Club Refund to all the states of the federation. The Paris club refund was released by the Federal government solely for the payment of arrears of salaries and pensions. No more, no less.”

The TUC chairman, Ekundayo also said that: “It is only Ondo state government out of all the 36 states that have refused to address either the press or its citizenry on the refund despite repeated demands by the labour leaders.

“It is disheartening to note that while other states have disbursed their refund, according to the directive of the federal government, Ondo state government pretends not to have received it

“It is a bitter truth that the state government in connivance with the office of the accountant general has fixed the Paris club refund in a private interest yielding account in one of the banks for the reasons best known to them”.

The unions, therefore, directed workers in the State to converge on the office of the Head of Service in the State every day until the state government is able to address the public on issues pertaining to the Paris club refund or commence payment of salary arrears.

Speaking to the workers and pensioners, the State Head of Service, Mr Toyin Akinkuotu, said the state government is committed to the welfare of the workers in the State and will continue to give priority to payment of workers salaries and pensions.

Akinkuotu assured the protesting workers that the state government would be transparent in the disbursement of the Paris Club refund, saying workers and pensioners in the State would soon smile.

He noted that the present administration in the state has been paying workers salaries promptly as at when due, saying “don’t forget in a hurry that this present government has been able to pay three months out of the seven months arrears owed by the immediate past administration in the State.”