Public service workers in Kogi State yesterday shut down offices and stayed off work in protest over the non release of the N50.8 billion bailout fund approved by the Central Bank of Nigeria to offset backlog of salaries owed them.
Daily Trust reports that offices such as the Ministries of Education, Health, Transport, Works, Agriculture, Environment, Urban Planning, Land and Housing as well as Secretary to the State Government (SSG) office among others, were under lock and completely deserted.
The stay off work protest followed a directive jointly issued by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress to public service workers in Kogi State.
Controversy has been trailing the bailout fund issue with the People Democratic Party (PDP) led government in the state accusing the All Progressive Congress (APC) of frustrating release of the fund for political reasons.
At a joint press conference held in Lokoja yesterday by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) and Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), the labour leaders appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to direct the CBN governor to release the funds without further delay.
NLC chairman in the state, Comrade Onuh Edoka, said public service workers boycotted work yesterday to register their grievances.
He said many workers in the state had died of hunger and treatable ailments due to non payment of salaries ‘‘while the N50.8 billion bailout fund approved for them by the federal government lie fallow at Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’’.
“This is completely political. It is the politicians that are playing around this money. We want to call on President Muhammadu Buhari to re-direct the CBN to release the bailout fund and for our workers in Kogi, we urge them to remain calm”, he said.
He maintained that the organized labour in the state was not being sponsored to demand release of the bailout fund as being insinuated, adding, “what we are doing is to ensure that workers get what is due to them’’.
In his remarks, state Chairman of NUT, Comrade Abdullahi Suleiman, lamented that the hope of basic education staff in the state is being dashed going by the present development and joined his voice in calling on President Buhari to intervene in the matter. He said basic education teachers and local government workers in the state are the major beneficiaries of the bailout fund, as N45 billion out the N50.8 billion approved for the state is meant to offset their salaries.
State president of NULGE, Comrade Tom Abutu, who rained curses on the politicians alleged to be behind non release of the funds, lamented that local government workers in the state were being owed about 18 months salaries.
