The Niger State Government has called on the state chapter of Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, to sheath its sword and reconsider its position over the plan to embark on strike, following government’s decision to pay 50 per cent salaries of civil servants for the months of November and December.
The state Commissioner of Information and Strategy, Alh Mohd Sani Idris, made the call while addressing newsmen in Minna
Idris stated that the plan to defer 100 per cent salaries of workers for months November and December by Niger state government was due to shortfall in Federation Account, FAC, and Internally Generated Revenue, IGR, occasioned by coronavirus pandemic.
“This problem is not only peculiar to Niger State alone but a general phenomenon that has affected the 36 states of Nigeria, including Abuja.”
According to him, the state received the sum of N4.2b from Federation Account for the month of November as against the over N5b out of which salaries took N2.9b alone.
He explained that about N500m has been earmarked for pension, along with N210m for the Contributory Pension Scheme.
The Commissioner further revealed that most Ministries Departments and Agencies in the state have forfeited their overhead cost to enable government meet its other obligations.
He noted, “Though Niger State Government will not lower its momentum in discharging its responsibilities to the best of its ability, it cannot compromise on issue of security that will guarantee peace and economic prosperity.”
On the state government’s projects, he explained, “most of state government’s projects are on bond and we will also want labour to come to term with it and to see things in their clearer perspective.”
It would be recalled that the meeting between the state government and the labour on the issue of staff ended in a deadlock as both sides refused to shift grounds, hence the alleged plan to go on strike by the NLC.
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