NIGERIA MASTERWEB DAILY NEWS

*Suspension of Anambra Workers’ Strike: Intersociety Advises State Govt & Labour

By Intersociety

(Onitsha Nigeria, 13th October 2011)-On 8th of October, 2011, we (Intersociety, CLO & Human Rights Club) reacted to the suspension of the strike action by the State leadership of the Trade Union Congress, an umbrella body for senior civil servants by tasking the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress, an umbrella body for junior civil servants to follow suit and embrace dialogue so as to avoid incurring the consequences of the Anambra public opinion, which weighed heavily against the continuation of the strike action because of substantial fulfilment by the Government of Anambra State, of the Labour’s minimum wage demands. And on 12th of October, 2011, the leadership of the NLC suspended its three-week strike action, agreed on further negotiation with its employers- the Government of Anambra State and gave it three weeks to resolve other outstanding issues pertaining to the industrial dispute.

While we (the leadership of International Society for Civil Liberties & the Rule of Law) commend the Government and the Labour for shifting grounds, we particularly commend the intervention of the national leadership of the NLC, which substantially made the suspension of the strike action possible. Before the intervention of the NLC national leadership, the State leadership of the Labour appeared to have allowed itself and its demands hijacked by some overzealous politicians, who derive joy in seeing the State grounded to a halt, all in the name of “playing politics”. Apart from rallies at Aroma Junction, the NLC businesses appeared to have been shifted to a private hotel owned by one of the overzealous politicians. Reports of constant visits to the hotel by key Labour leaders in the State during the strike filtered in ceaselessly. He who fetches ant-infested fire-woods, they say, unconditionally invite lizards for unsolicited labour. But for the intervention of the national leadership of the NLC, the Anambra Labour leaders appeared to have found themselves in a point of “no return”, in the hands of the overzealous politicians, who are believed to have hijacked them as well as the unwarranted strike action for parochial political reasons. On the other hand, State organized labour has done nothing to make private firms, whose status fit into the spirit and letters of the 2011 National Minimum Wage Act to implement the wage for their workers. While workers working for those private firms continue to be paid peanuts, the Labour leadership in the State appeared to be interested only in making the Government to comply with the Act so as to benefit them only.

As Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola of Lagos State revealed recently (see Vanguard Newspaper of 13th October 2011 , under a caption: “Is Lagos State Still Working?”), the full implementation of the new minimum wage and footing the monthly bills of the State’s political appointees are a serious threat to the social services delivery. In the State, according to him, it would take between N5.5Billion and N7Billion a month to pay the Lagos State’s 50.000 workers and her political appointees, out of the State’s N18Billion to N20Billion monthly revenue receipts, or 40% of her total monthly earnings. That is for a State like Lagos that has a bountiful revenue generation base! What about States with lean purses? Any day the spirit and letters of the Social Contract are flouted by the governing authorities, anarchy and lawlessness become the second nature of our societal habitation. In Anambra State, out of her N3Billion federal monthly average revenue receipts as well as her paltry N450Million to N500Million IGR monthly earnings, her 15.000 workers as well as her hundreds-fold political appointees are taking up to N2.3Billion every month to service themselves, leaving little remainder for the owners of the government-Anambra People.

But unlike other States with almost dry revenue sources other than federally generate-able revenues, chiefly from oil and gas, Anambra revenue sources (i.e. IGR) are badly managed, corrupted and under-developed. One major merit of the Minimum Wage brouhaha is that it will serve as a wakeup call to the managers of the Government of Anambra State to overhaul her IGR collection machinery. That a State with monthly IGR potentials of, at least, N5Billion still generates N450Million to N500Million monthly is very sad and worrying. A number of radical measures must be taken by the Government of Anambra State to remedy the ugly situation if she is to sustain the tempo of the badly needed social developments including building and effective maintenance of key infrastructures. Some of these measures are effective or proactive overhauling of the State cabinet and her revenue generation machinery as well as re-organization, upgrading or computerization of her civil service.

Signed:

Emeka Umeagbalasi, Chairman, BOT
+234(0)8033601078

Photo Above: Emeka Umeagbalasi, Chairman, Board of Trustees, Intersociety, 41, Miss Elems Street, Fegge, Onitsha, Anambra State, Nigeria.

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