Pay Cleared Workers and Pensioners Up To Date Before Considering Those Pardoned, Hon. Toba Counsels Kogi Gov.
Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State has
been advised to make the payment of salaries to cleared workers and
pensioners in the state a priority.
Hon. Toba Abraham, a renowned
publisher and public policy analyst in Kogi State, made this known while
speaking against the backdrop of the recent strike action embarked upon
by Kogi State workers and government inability to pay cleared workers
weeks after the organised labour called off the seven weeks old strike
The publisher said rather than
concentrate on trying to pay those said to have been pardon by the state
Governor, he appealed to the Governor to put the available resources
together for the payment of salaries to the genuine and recently cleared
workers.
The publisher decried a situation
where by Labour seems to be more concerned about the workers who were
been pardon for various criminal offences at the expense of genuinely
cleared workers who at the end of November would have been owed backlog
of four months salaries.
The publisher expresses his
displeasure with the Governor for bowing to pressure from Labour by
announcing pardon to those who have committed so much infringement
against the state even when it was apparent and clearly accepted by
labour and other stakeholders that those infractions were actually
committed.
While acknowledging the right and
the discretionary power of the Governor to grant such pardon he was of
the opinion that all efforts would have been concentrated on
re-integrating back to the state payroll those genuine workers who were
newly cleared and have not been paid. If this had been done, the cries
that the Governor is not paying salary would not have arisen.
He said rather than Labour and those
so-called pardon workers to continue to show appreciation to the
Governor for his magnanimity and show of mercy, they instead resulted
to propaganda and blackmail that they are being owed 20 months salaries.
Toba, however, believe it has become
imperative due to the exigency of the situation that the Governor put
in place the needed machinery to ensure that those genuine workers and
pensioners who have been cleared and have not been paid and those who
have been receiving their salaries be accorded priority by ensuring that
these categories of workers are paid up to date.
“This will help to separate the
‘wheat from the chaff.’ And this will help to confirm to the whole
world that Governor Bello is not owing salary,” he said.
According to him, a situation
whereby those who have defrauded the state as reflected in the recently
publicised lists of workers with fake/forged certificates and many who
have been indicted of collecting multiple salaries, diaspora workers and
so on would seems to have attracted the sympathy of labour leaders more
than the genuine workers is not morally acceptable.
Hon. Toba described Governor Bello
as God sent with good intention to reposition Kogi State for greatness.
He applauded Governor Bello’s courage for embarking on the Workers
screening and the transparent manner in which the exercise was carried
out.
According to him the workers
screening was a necessity given the magnitude of corruption perpetuated
by a microscopic minorities in the civil service of Kogi State.
He noted the pains the exercise has
brought on genuine, innocent. honest. hardworking and committed workers
but quickly appeal to the workers to cooperate with the governor as he
strive to improve on the welfare and well-being of the generality of the
citizen of the state and the workers in particular noting that
governance in this time of recession is a difficult task, that require
the cooperation of all.
Hon. Toba urged the governor to listen to the voice of reasoning and see how those cleared workers would be paid till date.
credit kogireport
No comments