In this interview with KAYODE FASUA, President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, laments the plight of Nigerian workers, as he accuses the governors of siphoning bailout funds meant for offsetting workers’ unpaid salaries.Excerpts:
As at today, how many states are still owing workers’ salary and pension, and what is the Nigeria Labour Congress doing about the situation?
There are many states that are still owing workers and pensioners but Kogi State is almost the worst. The state government is owing workers between eight and 15 months’ salary arrears. The state government has been hiding under verification exercise to delete some workers’ names from the state payroll but these workers are not ghost workers; they are bonafide civil servants in Kogi State. In the North Central geo-political zone, Benue State is also another bad case among states owing salaries and pensioners. Benue State is one of the states documented by ICPC as being among the states that diverted the bailout meant to pay workers’ salaries. For now, about 10 states are not paying workers and pensioners as and when due. Bayelsa State is also on the list of debtor states. The state is owing pensioners, teachers and civil servants. In the case of Osun State, the state has been paying workers on the basis of percentage and that has also brought pains on workers; the same thing Oyo State is doing. Ondo State also has accumulated salaries that have not been paid. But we also have examples of some states that are doing extremely very well and are workers-friendly. For example, Jigawa State is not owing workers, in fact the state has not collected any bailout from the federal government. The state pays salary and pension of workers as and when due, and if you retire today, you get your gratuity without delay.
How did we get to this situation?
Fund diversion. In the first tranche of bailout fund given to the states by the Federal Government, more than 26 states benefitted, but the irony of it all is that, the more the FG gives bailouts to the states, the less you understand what the states do with the money. A lot of states have been diverting bailouts meant to pay outstanding salaries and pensions, to other things, and this is why we are in the present situation.
Recently, the news was all over the place about how a state governor diverted $3 million from a previous bailout collected from the Federal Government to build a five-star hotel in Lagos. This is very unfortunate. This shows high level of political irresponsibility on the part of our political elite.
A STATE GOVERNOR DIVERTED $3 MILLION FROM A PREVIOUS BAILOUT COLLECTED FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO BUILD A FIVE-STAR HOTEL IN LAGOS
A lot of people have canvassed the scrapping of paying security votes to the governors, describing it as a wasteful act. How about you?
Security votes should be abolished.
What do these governors do with billions of naira they collect monthly as security votes? More so, the money is not even accounted for, security votes negate the principles of transparency. Nothing is transparent about security vote and this promotes corruption; therefore, it should be abolished.
If a state is not at war, why should a governor collect N1 billion monthly as security vote which is not even accounted for? This is nothing but corruption-security vote is another avenue for looting.
However, we will not continue to lament about the evils being perpetrated against workers in Nigeria by the political elite. What we have resolved to do now is to engage Nigerian workers and pensioners in political education, on how to use their political franchise to determine the fate of bad leaders. The population of Nigerian workers is over 10 million, and how many of these politicians got elected with 10 million votes?
Talking about the casualty arising from non-payment of salaries and pensions, can you give us the number of workers and pensioners that had died as a result of being owed by state governments?
It is difficult to give an exact figure because we don’t have a reliable data bank to give exact figure, but defnitely, many workers and pensioners have lost their lives as a result of being owed. Even at verification centres set up by some state governments, several workers and pensioners have lost their lives while waiting on the queue to be verified. Even at a time in Kaduna, several workers lost their lives when there was a bomb explosion near one of the centres but where some of these tragedies occurred, including that of Kaduna. NLC has insisted that the families of the workers that lost their lives must be compensated.
As for these workers and pensioners that lost their lives as a result of unpaid salaries and benefits, we will continue to fight for their interests until their families are compensated. Let me also say this; the blood of these workers are on the head of the state governors and political leaders who failed to do the needful.
It was learnt that the release of a fresh N500bn bailout to the states was being put on the hold as a result of the NLC insistence that the governors must account for how they spent the first tranche given to them. How far is this true?
Yes, we insisted that the state governors should give account of how they used the first bailout. What is baffling us is that the more you give money to these governors, the more you don’t understand what they do with the money. We have found out from both the EFCC and the ICPC reports that some state governors actually diverted the bailout. This is not only unpatriotic but very shameful. Some of them put the bailout they collected in fixed deposits where they now collect huge interests, while workers continue to wallow in hunger. Some of them awarded bogus contracts that don’t have meaning or relevance to the lives of the citizens. This is why we insisted that the Federal Government should not release another bailout without accountability.
Amid economic recession, and even with the current situation where several states are still owing workers, the NLC has demanded wage increase, a N56, 000 minimum wage. How realistic?
I’ve told you earlier that the issue of payment of salaries and pension as and when due is not only about availability of funds but also about states getting their priorities right. Secondly, the recession issue is not an excuse at all. All over the world, economies bubble and also get burst. Everything is about planning and having foresight, and these are what our leaders lack. Visionary lew aders are few in this clime.
In 2011, we signed a minimum wage of N18,000, but it was mutually agreed that after a period of five years, there would be a review-this was mutually agreed to by all the parties. If you also look at the present economic challenges, inflation is soaring with its attendant results-some of these include high cost of goods and services. What all these mean is that N18,000 is no longer realistic.
In 2011, N18,000 was equivalent to 119 dollars, but today, the value of 119 dollars is less than 46 dollars. So on the basis of fact and on the basis of economic reality, it is very clear that N18,000 is no longer realistic to take care of a worker and his family. This is the fact we are putting on the table, and it can’t be controverted.
Nigerian workers are passing through a very difficult period. You are also aware that during the same period, the Federal Government increased the price of fuel, a commodity that determines the price of nearly every other commodity in Nigeria. Fuel price was increased from N86 to N145. Not only that, electricity tariff was also increased by more than 50 percent and workers’ salary has remained on the same spot. So how do you expect workers to cope with these challenges?
What has been the response of the federal government to the wage increment demand?
The Federal Government has agreed in principle. A technical committee to work out the detail has been set up, and the NLC participated fully. The report of that committee has been transmitted to the Presidency, and we are expecting that the Federal Executive Council should immediately approve the recommendations of the committee. The ball is in the court of the Federal Government
