Rochas to sack 5000 workers in imo state

Members of the organised Labour today in Owerri
protested the threat by Governor Rochas Okorocha to
sack about 5,000 workers from the civil service. They
shut down Owerri, the Imo State capital.
The protesting workers, joined by the national officers
of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), members of industrial
unions from South-East and South-South in solidarity,
caused traffic jam as they marched round major roads
of Owerri metropolis, displaying placards with various
inscriptions such as “we cannot be intimidated by
Okorocha”, “Enough is enough, let Imo workers be” and
“Salary is our right, not privilege”.
During the 2016 budget presentation to the House of
Assembly, Governor Okorocha announced that the
government had concluded plans to disengage about
5,000 workers to reduce the wage bill of the
government.
However, addressing the National President of NLC,
Ayuba Wabba, and his entourage at the Government
House, Okorocha said he appreciated the concern of the
leaders of the NLC, but that the labour leaders were
obviously misinformed about the conditions of the
workers.
The governor said: “I appreciate the concern of the
national leaders of the NLC, but you must have been
misinformed about the situation in Imo State because
this government is anchored on the welfare of the
people.
“I am the first governor in the entire country to pay
workers N20,000 minimum wage when others are
paying N18,000 and I have paid workers on the 18th of
every month in the past four years but the labour
leaders last year instigated workers to embark on strike
when the government owed them just one month, which
was really unnecessary.”
Okorocha accused the workers of not only being
ungrateful but acting as opposition members and not
partners with the State Government, insisting that no
worker is owed salary except workers of Adapalm
because of issues arising from their employment, which
the state government is trying to resolve.
He further noted that the state Chairman of NLC, Austin
Chilakpu, instead of working closely with the
government has been instigating the workers.
Speaking earlier, Wabba said the NLC was in the state to
intervene in the situation. (64)