The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Cross River State has given Governor Ben Ayade a seven-day ultimatum, beginning from yesterday, to implement a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) reached between them on July 2, or else workers will resume strike.
Addressing reporters at the end of a State Executive Council (SEC) meeting at the NLC secretariat in Calabar, NLC Chairman, Comrade John Ushie, said the governor had failed workers by reneging on the agreement.
Workers embarked on an indefinite strike earlier this year, which they suspended after reaching an agreement with the government on July 2.
Ushie said: “We express our disappointment at the government for failure to honour some critical aspects of the MoU signed on July 2. Among them is the failure of the government to pay gratuity to retirees from June 2013 to date.
“We are also aware that the government, after the suspension of the strike on July 2, agreed to pay that week. The 2013 retirees were to be paid their gratuity. But we are here again to tell the whole world that the agreement was not kept and that the government has jettisoned the agreement again. This led to this meeting today as directed by the National Executive Council meeting held on November 16, where the NEC directed councils where the government has not implemented fully, the payment of salaries, arrears of salaries, arrears of pensions and gratuities to go back and put it into force. And that was done on the basis of the fact that the Paris Club refund has been released to state governments and that the money is meant to pay arrears of salaries, gratuities and pension.”
He said the government had also failed the workers in terms of implementation of workers’ promotion; regularising the state payroll system; selective payment of imprest to Ministries, Departments and Agencies and failure to return the Etim Edem Motor Park to the National Union of Road Transport Workers, which were part of the MoU.
Ushie said efforts to reach the government to resolve the issues proved abortive.