Brave Dickson
As reactions continue to trail the sealing off of secretariat of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) at the D-Line area of Port Harcourt over minimum wage face-off by the Rivers State Government, Chairman of NLC in Rivers, Mrs Beatrice Itubo, has expressed surprise over the development and intimidation of Rivers workers by the Nyesom Wike’s administration.
Rivers State Government sealed the NLC secretariat due to demands by labour to immediately reconvene the minimum wage committee to address the issue of the minimum wage.
Itubo insisted that Rivers State Government employees were yet to be paid the agreed minimum wage.
Rivers NLC had lamented the discrepancies in the payment of the new minimum wage by Wike’s administration.
They also accused the government of rushing to implement the new minimum wage without a signed agreement between the state government and labour.
The sealed state secretariat of NLC in Port Harcourt was donated by Wike’s administration, to replace the dilapidated structure.
Itubo had asked workers in the state to be on the alert and await further directive on the minimum wage, declaring that indifference of the Wike’s administration would no longer be tolerated.
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A source within the NLC told theportcitynews in confidence that the state chapter of the congress is considering embarking on a strike to force the state government to do the right thing.
He said that they are awaiting the directives of the national secretariat so as to move on to their plan B, adding that the time that governors cough and expect the workers to catch cold has since passed.
But Pastor Paulinus Nsirim, the state commissioner for information and communication on Saturday night, in an online statement, stated that the state’s NLC should be ready to face “dire consequences,” if it made good the threat over minimum wage while accusing the leadership of becoming tools in the hands of unnamed politicians.
Nsirim said that “Rivers State government has commenced the payment of the new minimum wage for employees of the state public service with the consequential salary adjustments as approved by the Federal Government, and will not be deterred by cheap blackmail.
“Governor Wike remains committed to workers’ welfare and will not allow the activities of a few disgruntled elements to dissuade his resolve to serve the people.”
