Weeping for the ex-Nigeria Airways workers

Nigeria will continue to be a wonderful country for so many reasons, no thanks to the different ways those in positions of authority do things there.

The questionable ways different past and present governments have continued to manage the affairs of Nigeria have made the country almost an Island on its own.

In Nigeria, there is no guarantee that when you work and toil for your dear country, you will be adequately rewarded for it not until you have been subjected to frustration and oppression by some few people who are in the positions to ensure justice and fairness.

As it is known that those put in positions of authority are there to represent the generality of Nigerians, circumstances have proved otherwise that few of these people are using the privilege they have to make life difficult for other Nigerians.

This brings to the fore, the pathetic case of the Nigeria Airways workers who have been denied the fruit of their labour for 14 years after the former national carrier was controversially liquidated.

Since the liquidation, the workers of the defunct national airline had been subjected to untold hardship by the agents of the various governments who continue to play pranks as a way of denying them their final entitlements.

It’s no longer news that the Federal Executive Council led by President Muhammadu Buhari ordered the release of N45 billion for their entitlement towards the end of 2017.

All efforts to get the money paid was again frustrated by the responsible government bodies as the file containing the information for the payment of the former government workers was said to be hanging between the National Assembly and the Ministry of Finance.

As tension continues to rise, the aviation unions threatened to shut down the country’s airspace should the Federal Government failed to pay off workers of the defunct national airline.

The high tension reduced when the Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika declared that the Ministry of Finance would commence the payment of the former workers after the Easter break.

Unfortunately, almost one month after the promise, the status quo remains with life becoming more miserable for the former workers.

Amidst all these intrigues, the news has just filtered into the sector that there may be no truth in the declarations that the former workers will be paid soon.

The latest development has been traced to a letter sent to the National Assembly by President Buhari dated March 8, 2018, requesting that the National Assembly should pass a bill to effect the ‘promissory note and bond issuance programme to clear the longstanding obligations inherited by this administration.’

In other words, until the lawmakers amend the bill to accommodate payment of the final entitlement of the former national carrier’s workers, their suffering may continue for only God knows.

There is no doubt that this latest revelation is a serious blow to the psyche of the over 4,000 former workers and Nigerians in general whose high hopes have been dashed once again by intrigues and counter intrigues.

With the letter recently sent to the National Assembly from the office of the President, all the declarations made by the different government officials including the minister may just be a ruse meant to deceive the former government workers.

The question is why is government finding it difficult to pay off this set of Nigerians who used their youthful age to toil for the defunct national airline even when their counterparts in Europe and America were settled almost immediately after the airline was liquidated.

Now that the request for the payment of the former workers is before the National Assembly, it is hoped that they will treat the case with urgency. The former workers have suffered enough injustice and all hands are on the deck to see how their case will be treated. A worker it is said deserves his/her wage.