The Governor of Ebonyi State, Francis Nwifuru has threatened to sack and replace any worker in the state who joins the ongoing one week warning strike directed by the national leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress.
Nwifuru made this known on Monday while briefing journalists in his office at the new government house complex Centenary City Abakaliki, where he said he would never negotiate with NLC in the state.
The governor threatened to, forthwith, pay salaries via table payment which is according to number of days each worker was seen on his or her duty post.
Addresing the workers who had embarked on strike over failure of the governor to negotiate with union leaders before pronouncing N75,000 as minimum wage, Nwifuru said, “Whatever salary you were taking before now, you already have Forty Thousand Naira on top of it, so, I don’t see where anyone is shortchanged. Unless the person wants crisis. After all this was the chart that was being used in this state and you never complained. Let us not take our personal interest as public interest.
“If you didn’t go to work. Not only that I will not pay you salary, I will replace you within 72 hours in your office. If I didn’t see you in your office, as far as I am not guilty, I am not owing you. I am paying you what is supposed to be paid and according to agreement and constitution, I am not owing you.
“If you didn’t go to work within 72 hours, I will replace you and I have called the Chairman, Civil Service Commission.
I have directed all the commissioners to go to their offices, all the agencies, all the departments of government must be in their offices and record the people that come to work and that is the people I will pay through table payment. By the number of days you attend to your duty in your office.
“If you don’t want to come to work, you will forget about state government. We are not owing any worker in this state, both pension, gratuity and salary and we are paying the minimum wage as enshrined by the Act of the National assembly.
“I don’t know why our state should start a fight where there is no cause for it. I said this before the NLC chairman and I make bold to say that I will never negotiate with you sir (NLC chairman). You are not my staff. You are not a staff of this state, you are the federal government staff and I don’t know why you are even the NLC chairman. I will start querying that now.”
