Lukman Abdulmalik
In 2016 Yahya Bello was sworn in as the governor of Kogi state, succeeding the late Prince Abubakar Audu who won the election.
During his first tenure in office, different screenings of state and local government workers were conducted to eliminate ghost workers and the state government promised to implement full salary payments for workers who passed the screening exercise.
However, the promise remained unfulfilled, as many civil servants are still not getting regular and full payments of their salaries.
In an interview, a school teacher who wished to remain anonymous for obvious reasons said she has not been happy with her job for about 7 years now.
She complained that she barely goes to work as her salary is insufficient to cater to her transportation and household needs.
Onimisi lamented: “I am a local government worker and also a teacher, I have a passion to impact knowledge on the pupils.
“But the carelessness of the government towards improving the salary standard is affecting my job, on many occasions, I used money generated from my charcoal business to transport myself to work.
“I collected loans for the survival of her family, that’s why the little token the state government pays doesn’t reach her account, as the bank deducts their returns.”
Similarly, Zainab Aliyu Avosuahi, a Nurse at Okene Primary Healthcare lamented that health workers hardly discharge their responsibilities; some don’t even come to work, as most of them complain of amputated or nonpayment of salaries.
She revealed that on most occasions patients hardly meet medical personnel to attend to their health challenges and that health workers earn stipends from registering and issuing birth, death, and certificates to those who require them.
The touchy tale of a civil servant
Abdulmumin Asuku is an indigent of Okene, Kogi central. He has 8 children, two wives, and other dependants he caters to. He also has a nine (9) months old baby boy that looks malnourished due to improper feeding.
Asuku who works as medical staff at Okene General Hospital laments that the payment of amputated salary is affecting his livelihood and he can authoritatively talk for many other workers in the state.
He said: Workers’ life in the state has not been favorable as many civil servants are struggling to feed their families, even though some people strive through other means to survive the hardship.
“Since the emergence of this administration, we have been receiving incomplete salaries.”
He maintained that during the previous administration, workers were living an average life.
“When Governor Ibrahim Idris Wada was in power, I was earning the sum of N70,000, but currently I cannot say what my salary is, because I am being paid in percentage in different months.
“Because of the percentage ratio, sometimes I received N22,000 or less. For instance, last month I received N14,000 which is not enough to transport me to work and feed my large family for the month.
“My children go to private schools but I no longer afford it again; they are now at home.
“Look at them (he was pointing at his children returning home) they now hawk Apapa (an Ebira delicacy) in the morning and evenings in the street of Okene town.
“I can’t afford to pay their school fees again; the expenses are much on me while my income is low and unstable.”
NLC reacts
It could be recalled that the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) Kogi State Chapter maintained in an article published in the Vanguard on March 23, 2022, that the Kogi state government pays percentage salaries to workers.
The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Kogi State, chapter, has dismissed a statement credited to the State Government that its Chairman, Onuh Edoka, confirmed that Governor Yahaya Bello’s administration does not owe workers’ salaries.
Click to read more https://www.vanguardngr.com/2022/03/you-owe-workers-salaries-labour-hits-back-at-kogi-govt/
