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| Labour Protest In Owerri, Imo State |
The recent protest in Owerri, Imo State capital by the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) over the sack of 3,000 workers by the State government should serve as a lesson to other State governors in the country.
Before the protest in Owerri embarked upon by labour in Imo State, some state governors had muted the idea of reducing the N18, 000 minimum wage of workers in the country.
The fierce response by Labour on the proposed wage cut by the State governors’ perhaps forced them to halt the plan.
The decision of the NLC and TUC leadership to storm Owerri to show solidarity to Imo workers over Governor Rochas Okorocha’s plans to downsize the State workforce is a direct message to other State governors to place the welfare of workers and the citizenry above other considerations.
One of the fine ingredients of democracy is the happiness of the people and every government that derive its mandate from the people is bound to pursue their happiness at all times.
At a time there is economic meltdown in the country over falling oil prices in the international market, poor citizens in the country should not be made the “scape goat” of the down turn of the Nigerian economy. The people alone should not be subjected to bear the brunt of a decaying economy that is mismanaged and badly battered by those they elected to serve them.
Nigeria is indeed at a cross- roads over the poor state of the national economy. Indeed, it calls for adjustments on the part of all and sundry. However,such belt tightening measures is the collective responsibility of those who govern and the governed.
Such measures should not be the responsibility of poor Nigerians alone who live below $1dollar per day. It is not the responsibility of poor pensioners who are subjected to series of stressful verification exercises just to collect their compensation for their toil and broil of yesteryear. It is not the sole duty of civil servants who lubricate the wheels of governance of any State.
We have seen in recent times how public office holders, particularly State Governors, have continued to live affluent lifestyles despite the turn – around in the economy of the nation. Nigerians still watch in awe and disbelief the long convoy of State Governors and the affluent lifestyle of their family members, cronies and associates.
The errors and padding of allocations by officials of Federal Ministries and agencies as noticed in the 2016 Federal Budget is a clear revelation that some public office holders remain totally insensitive to the present economic situation in the land.
The ongoing war against corruption by the Buhari administration has also revealed to Nigerians that some officials of the past administration willfully indulged in mindless looting of the nation’s resources to the detriment of the national economy.
There have been also reports that some Governors and other category of public office holders in the country do operate fat bank accounts in foreign countries and live in opulence and splendor whenever they are on vacation outside the country.
This implies and lends credence to the fact that some of those elected into public office do not care hoot about the seeming hopeless economic condition of the country. Therefore some State Governors who resort to impose anti workers policies as a basis to manage resources of their various States are not only inhuman to the worsening plight of the people but can be said to anti- people.
While we share Governor Rochas Okorocha’s postulation that civil servants in Imo State are indolent and redundant, it therefore behooves on Labour to put in place measures to boost and encourage productivity in the civil service in all States of the federation. The civil service in some States drive the economy of such States and it will be counter- productive for the economy of the States if the civil service is indolent.
At the same time other State governors in the country should emulate the precedent set by the Imo State governor who conceded 70% of the total revenue accruable to Imo State to payment of workers’ salaries.
This does not remove the conviction of this online newspaper that Imo State and other oil producing States in the federation do have the financial capacity to pay its workers and possibly increase their wages despite the fall in the price of crude oil in the international market.
State Governors in the country should learn from the protest by the NLC in Imo State. The will of the people will always prevail over unpopular policies.
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