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Tag: Ngige

  • NECA disagrees with Ngige on retrenchment

    NECA disagrees with Ngige on retrenchment

    The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has disagreed with  the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, that private sector employers, especially the oil and gas companies, should not sack workers  and falling oil prices.

    Speaking in Lagos, NECA Director-General Mr. Olusegun Oshinowo said: “We have noted the recent meetings of the minister with employers’ representatives in some sectors of the economy and his directive not to retrench. The minister seems not to have shown an understanding of the fundamentals of managing a business in an economy bedevilled by a drastic fall in the price of crude oil, scarcity of foreign exchange and gross erosion of purchasing power.

    “The truth is that retrenchment is not a palatable option for any business. No employer will take pleasure in declaring redundant employees, which it has invested in developing over the years.”

    Speaking further, he said job security cannot be decreed by ministerial pronouncements, but can only be encouraged and promoted through strong macro- economic fundamentals and an enabling environment. He said it is part of the inalienable right of an employer to determine the optimal staff level it will need to sustain its operations.

    “Where an employer has found it necessary to carry out retrenchments, it would respect the laws of the land and laid down procedures for redundancy. Employers’ expectation from the Minister of Labour and Employment is that he will work hand in hand with other government ministries in the establishment of the desired enabling environment that will ensure business sustainability, competitiveness and job creation,” Oshinowo said.

    The NECA chief pointed out that the Ministry of Labour and Employment runs on the principle of tri-partism, which entails regular interactions with trade unions as represented by Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), the employer as represented by NECA, and government as represented by the Federal Ministry of Labour, and respect for their rights and interests on issues that relate to labour and industrial relations.

    Mr. Oshinowo particularly deplored a situation where the Minister will invite a key constituent for an important meeting and keep the party waiting endlessly.

    He said: “This has not been the practice of the Federal Ministry of Labour. We appealed to the minister to show respect to the social partners by being timely and punctual at meetings which he has called.”

    In a related development, the minister met with the Nigeria Union of Petroleum, Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) in Abuja,  to get an update on the challenges in the oil and gas sector.

    At the meeting, Ngige said: “The oil sector is the backbone of the economy and as long as we are in charge of labour issues in this country, we will do all we can to avoid crises in the sector. We want to assure you that workers in the oil sector will be protected and nobody or company can bribe when it concerns workers.”

    PENGASSAN President, Mr. Johnson Olabode, called for urgent passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) in the National Assembly, noting that it would address most of the challenges in the oil and gas sector. He noted that there were a lot of issues affecting workers that the ministry needed to address urgently.

    NUPENG President, Mr. Achese Igwe, said some of the challenges faced by members of the union included job outsourcing to expatriates, downsizing, restructuring, re-engineering, among others.

    He said workers in the sector had been enslaved for a long time by the foreign employers. “I am sure that they have not been able to tell you that there are permanent jobs that are outsourced as contract staff job and those workers are operators and engineers, among other professions,” he said.

  • Dignitaries bid Ngige’s dad farewell

    Dignitaries bid Ngige’s dad farewell

    It was a gathering of political giants and prominent citizens when Pa Pius Okonkwo Ngige, father of Minister of Labour Dr Chris Ngige and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Emeka Ngige, was buried in Alor, Anambra State. JOSEPH JIBUEZE and NWANOSIKE ONU write.

    For a long time to come, residents  of Alor town in Idemili South Local Government Area of Anambra State will not forget  the burial of their patriarch, the late Pius Okonkwo Ngige (aka Akunnia).

    The late Ngige was one of the oldest men in the state. He died at  the age of 105. Thus, it was a celebration of life. The late Ngige is survived by his youngest brother, Alphonsus, who is in his 90s; six children, including a former Anambra State Governor and now Minister of Labour Dr Chris Ngige, and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Emeka Ngige, who holds the title of Ikemba n’Alor; as well as many grand and great-grand children.

    A wake-keep the previous night took a party-like turn. Soon after prayers were said, fireworks lit up the sky. Various traditional dance groups entertained guests. On the adjourning roads leading to the Ngige family home, long rows of vehicles occupied both sides.

    It was a beehive of activities last Friday, after a funeral mass at the St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Alor. There was a heavy security presence, including men of the Department of State Services (DSS) operatives and the police. Men of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC),  were busy controlling traffic and the surging crowd.

    Choice wines and assorted drinks were in abundance. Local delicacies as well as continental dishes were on display. It was a carnival-like occasion.

    Traders also made brisk business, selling customised fez-caps, hats and vests which bore the late Ngige’s photograph.

    As large as the church cathedral was, it could not contain half of those who attended the ceremony. Canopies were mounted outside.

    All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu led other party chiefs to the event. They included National Chairman John Odigie Oyegun; former Interim Chairman Chief Bisi Akande; a former Ogun State Governor Chief Segun Osoba; a former Ekiti State Governor Otunba Niyi Adebayo, among others.

    Also at the event were: former Vice-President Alex Ekwueme; Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole; his Delta and Anambra counterparts Senator Ifeanyi Okowa and Willie Obiano; and former Anambra Governor Peter Obi. Also paying their last respects were Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu; Ebonyi State Governor Dave Umahi; Chief Niyi Akintola (SAN); Lagos branch chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Martins Ogunleye, his predecessor Chijioke Okoli, among others.

    President Muhammadu Buhari was represented by Secretary to the Government of the Federation Pastor Babachir David Lawal; Senate President Bukola Saraki was represented by Senator Dino Melaye; former Enugu State Governor Dr Okwesilieze Nwodo; Chief Judge of Anambra State, Justice Peter Umeadi; a former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Charles Soludo; a former Inspector-General of Police Mike Okiro; and a former Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS) Prof Epiphany Azinge (SAN); ministers- James Ocholi (SAN) (State for Labour); Senator Udo Udoma (Budget and Planning); Dr Kayode Fayemi (Solid Mineral); Rotimi Amaechi (Transport) and Hajiya Zainab Maina (Women Affairs), among others.

    Bishop Paulinus Ezeokafor, in his sermon, urged the Ngige family to be comforted by the good life their father lived.

    He reminded all of the inevitability of death. He urged all to reconsider their lifestyles and change their bad ways by keeping God’s commandments.

    Senator Ngige said: “My father’s life was a book of many volumes where you learn a lot of lessons. There was not a day I did not learn something new from him. He fought for the helpless, the voiceless, and the downtrodden.”

    Emeka Ngige, in his tribute, said the late Akunnia meant a lot to him. He was not just a father, but a friend, confidant, counselor, protector, motivator, educator and role model.

    The senior advocate said his father taught them integrity, consistency, doggedness, resilience, hard work, peacemaking and most importantly the fear of God.

  • Ngige: my father left the legacy of fairness, equity

    Ngige: my father left the legacy of fairness, equity

    •SGF leads Fed Govt’s delegation to burial

    Minister of Labour and Employment Senator Chris Ngige has said his late father, Pa Pius Okonkwo Ngige left legacies of truth, fairness and equity.

    The former Anambra State Governor spoke yesterday at his Urueze, Alor in Idemili South home while meeting with the burial committee. He described his late father as his friend because they shared stories and many other things in common.

    Senator Ngige said the most interesting aspect of the deceased’s life was that he admired the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, because of his free education policy in the Western Region.

    His words: “My father’s life was a book of many volumes where you learn a lot of lessons. There was not a day I did not learn a new thing from him.

    “He fought for the helpless, the voiceless, the down trodden, without looking for any compensation, which led to him resigning in 1958, for standing his ground against British intimidation.

    “Because he stopped at standard five, he vowed that all his children must acquire western education and the same thing lured him into giving scholarships. The man we are talking about dropped his original name Ujokanma (fear is better), and adopted his nickname “Okwudike” (voice of a strong man) because he did not want to associate with fear.”

    Secretary to the Government of the Federation, (SGF) Babachir David Lawal will lead the Federal Government’s delegation to the burial on Friday.

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will arrive in the state on Thursday. President Muhammadu Buhari will arrive on Friday.

    Chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and members of the diplomatic corps are also expected. Others, according to Ngige, include Senate President Bukola Saraki, Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara, and others.

    Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano and his Enugu and Imo states counterpart, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and Rochas Okorocha, will be hosts.

     

  • Okonkwo Ngige: Exit of a colossus

    There is no better window into the illumining  life of late Akunnia Pius Okonkwo Ngige than this very angle that touches on nationalism, honesty and selflessness. The scarcity of these virtues has hobbled our dear nation to the knees as the cascade of corruption cases, which have dominated discussions since June 2015, bear it all out. Young Pius arrived Enugu in 1940 and was absorbed after a while into the Public Works Department (PWD) of the Eastern Regional Colonial Administration, now known as Ministry of Works.  He rose to an Assistant Foreman, Building and later, a Supervisor; a privileged position for a Nigerian in the colonial administration. Among others, his team was instrumental in building many hospitals especially in the old Onitsha province where a scheme, One Health Centre, One Village successfully ran. However, he sharply disagreed with British senior engineers over poor conditions under which Nigerian junior workers and artisans worked. Absence of Medicare, compensation for injuries at work, inequitable remunerations and negative profiling of indigenous workers were top of the issues. . There was also the controversial cutting of ëknack upí (lunch time) to thirty minutes from one hour.  He was not just an ordinary supervisor; he also had a burden of expectations from junior workers, who in admiration of his nationalism nicknamed him ìoppositionî leader. He pressed for a redress but it fell on deaf ears of these white overlords at loss over the agitation of ì Mr. Ngigeî who they thought being a supervisor, would align with them. He detested injustice and promptly resigned in 1958 to the chagrin of his bosses. Interface this nascent patriotism to the rampaging canker of corruption confronting the nation today!

    Born in 1910, into the wealthy family of Obidiwe , the first son of  Ngige, the influence of Whiteman on Obidiwe took his first son to school.  He enrolled first at Catholic Mission School,  Umuru Ide Alor,  later Central School Ekwulu , Nnobi where he had his Standard 5 with the famous educationist, James Okigbo, father of foremost economist, late Dr. Pius Okigbo as headmaster . Low enrolment forced the Colonial Native Authority to relocate Standard Six to a distant Ajali in todayís Orumba. The alternative was at Amawbia near Awka and his father would neither allow his first son to sojourn among strangers or be far located from him. Thus, the end of the quest for further education but he was already well equipped for life struggle, as events will show later.

    He was full of self-conviction and determination. He told me in 2009 that he quietly rejected suggestion by his father to take to farming after schooling, instead, moved to Onitsha under the tutelage of his uncles Dominic and Peter in February 1928. A cockerel shows early signs of ì masculinityî. Leaving his unclesí trading posts, he quickly aligned interest in vocational skills, making carpentry and furniture making a choice. That was how he built his capital and veered into the then flourishing bicycle rental service, building a large fleet. According him however, ì bad people started renting and disappearing with the bicycles,î thus depleting his fleet.  He was not daunted but obviously not cut for the notorious Onitsha business environment.  He therefore moved to Enugu where his education and vocational skill would be better deployed for life struggle. Whatís more, his brothers, P.N Okeke who later became Minister of Agriculture in the Eastern Region, Bernard Ojukwu and Ezekiel Obiegbu were already leading lights there.

    And he was bound for success.  When he left the PWD in 1958, he established his own private building construction company, P.O Ngige and Sons Enterprises. This multi-purpose company also veered into horticulture, handling some beautification projects in Enugu metropolis. PONSEL Nig. Ltd as the company later metamorphosed into was also involved in the post civil war reconstruction program of the Gowon Regime and was awarded a major sub-contracting work in the re-construction of Enugu-Nsukka-Opi-Ogurute-Oturkpo Road. He proved his competence as he credibly completed this task in record one year. His business was very prosperous and it reflected in the life of his relations in the large Ngige family.  He was a lover of education, making sure all his children had university education. His brothers, cousins and nephews, all benefited immensely, as some had the privilege of attending famous Colleges like CIC, Enugu long before independence.  If his compassion for the poor was measured by his love for education, which he freely availed, his kindness for fellow mankind also expressed eloquently. Here was a man who gave his Enugu home free to fellow returnee Biafrans at the end of the civil war.

    Instructively, his contributions to the development of his community were prominent. He participated actively in the formation of Alor Development Union while his Enugu home also nurtured the Aniolisa Social Club that pioneered development in Alor.  In his Urueze_Ide village, he became a rallying point as his city culture and uprightness came to the forefront. In the 50s, he plastered an age long family house which he also roofed with zinc, becoming the first around, hence the name ì gbam-gbamî meaning zinc as that house is still known today. He was the pillar of Ngige family and was father to all.

    Baptized on May 27 1927, he was a devout Christian and  a pioneer leader at St. Maryís Catholic Church Alor.  He wedded his lovely wife, late Priscilla Okafor from Nnobi in 1943 and was barely a month away from emerging as the longest living Alor baptized catholic during the centenary celebration held in October 2015.  Akunnia lived his faith. He fought obnoxious traditions and rescued a twin from Akunne family of Alor who was to be killed . This twin was later named Pius, after him.

    He believed in honesty and uprightness, the major reason he left Onitsha. In Enugu, the nickname ìOkwedikeî meaning Mr. Integrity was the result of his unbending stricture to transparency. Severally, he was elected unopposed as the treasurer of the Indigenous Federated Association of Nigerian Contractors, East Central state and for many years was the treasurer of the Ogbete Enugu Landlord Association. Akunnia was not a politician but was progressive and Spartan in thinking. He had scorn and disdain for unbridled material acquisition. He saw partisan hate politics in the political travails of Awolowo in the 60s, and was jocularly said in the hearing of all that Awo was in ìpolitical nga,î(jailed for political reasons)

    Men who lived up to his age often turn oracle and he did. He prayed and blessed all who came around him and predicted he would leave on September 1, 2015 and eventually left on the 4th. In Igbo, no man with diminished posterity is ever counted great.  Akunnia lives on in Sen. Chris Ngige, the Minister of labour, Emeka Ngige (SAN) and Edwin Ngige, an accountant.  With him abounds a lesson that with God, man is fully in charge of his own fate.  How? He quietly rejected his fatherís adviser to be a farmer and sojourned to Onitsha.  When Onitsha business environment turned unpalatable, he wasted no time in relocating to Enugu where he employed his education and vocational skill. He would not stomach the injustice by Whiteman in PWD and resigned. He tried his hands on buying and selling at the end of the war and needed no oracle to decipher his destiny was not there. Finally, he saw very early, the advantages which vocational skill possess over white-collar job.

    • Nwachukwu is SA Media to Labour & Productivity Minister
  • ‘Late Ngige was a bridge-builder’

    ‘Late Ngige was a bridge-builder’

    President of the Senate Bukola Saraki has lauded the life and times of late Ozo Pius Okonkwo Ngige, father of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, describing it as exemplary.

    A condolence letter sent to Ngige described the late patriarch as a colossus who left his footprint in the sands of time.

    “Chief Pius Okonkwo Ngige was a bridge-builder, a community leader and a successful civil servant. No doubt, your loving and caring father truly conducted himself as a devout Catholic. His achievements and contributions will remain indelible in the hearts and lives of many for generations to come.”

    Dr. Saraki prayed God to grant the late patriarch his eternal rest.  “Kindly extend our condolence to the Ngige clan, the people of Alor and Anambra State,” the letter said.

  • Salary review not feasible now, says Ngige

    Salary review not feasible now, says Ngige

    •Minister: governors, NLC heating up polity over minimum wage

    Minister of Labour and Employment Senator Chris Ngige has explained that the Federal Government will not be able to review salaries of workers at the moment owing to the country’s economic challenges.

    He noted that other tiers of government that have more money could pay higher wages.

    Ngige, who spoke when the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) visited him, said the minimum wage was an issue that was not contestable since it was a product of legislation backed by an Act of the National Assembly.

    The minister accused governors and the organised labour of heating up the polity with the controversy surrounding the issue.

    Ngige said the NLC leadership was quite aware that the governors were playing politics with the issue, stressing that anybody that wants a review of the Minimum Wage Act should approach the National Assembly or ask the President to send an Executive Bill.

    The minister added that the ministry was planning to review some of the nation’s existing labour laws, which, he said, were too old.

    He asked the organised labour to make their input into the new laws.

    Ngige said: “This is a government that has three pillars as its cardinal objectives. First, this is a government that wants to bring back security of lives and property, starting with fighting terrorism, which we know that the government is handling effectively and efficiently in the Northeast.

    “The second issue is that of making the economy right. Unfortunately, the price of oil is said to be the worst in 27 years. But we still have the stamina and determination to pull the economy out of the wood and so, we require the cooperation of all.

    “So, when NLC join the governors in talking about the minimum wage, with the governors saying we can’t pay N18,000 minimum wage and NLC says it is time for us to ask for increase, we now know that these talks are heating up the system.

    “The NLC knows better that the governors are playing politics. This is one matter that you cannot play politics with because it is a matter of rule of law. The law in place now is the Minimum Wage Act enacted by the National Assembly and the National Assembly derived their power from the Exclusive List of the constitution, which gives them power to make laws on labour related matters, including the minimum wage.

    “So, anybody who wants to talk about minimum wage should go to the National Assembly or ask the President to send an Executive Bill, which can be discussed and it will be a tripartite discussion, involving a public hearing.

    “Please let us be patient because this country is going through a very difficult time now and require your prayers and support. Nobody can increase wages now. If anything, if you have more money, you pay higher.

    “The third thing, which is also one of the pillars of government, is the fight against corruption. Corruption has eaten so deep into the fabric of the Nigerian system that if you are not corrupt, you look abnormal.

    “The labour laws need some tinkering because some of them are very old. Even the penalties that are prescribed in them are very old. You see some laws, which say that if people abuse expatriate quota, they pay a fine of N2,000. It doesn’t make sense.

    “As a ministry, we will look at all these laws and with Attorney General of the Federation, we will make sure that we fast-track some of these laws so that the necessary penalties that are commensurate with labour offences committed are meted out to the offending parties. We will need your input.

    “We want to reinvigorate our laws and give the Nigerian worker a decent work environment as prescribed by the ILO conventions.”

    The minister reinstated the commitment of the government to employment generation, adding that the government was aware that it was the easiest gateway to instability and insecurity.

    He added that there was no need investing so much on arms and ammunition when the money could be use to create employment and keep the youths busy.

    The NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, told the minister that national interest had always been behind the driving force of the congress, adding that there was the need for the government to respect collective bargaining process.

    Wabba hailed the intervention of the minister on the issue of outsourcing of jobs and casualisation.

    He said the Nigerian workers should not be treated like slaves, adding that if people were employed with decent work, it would augur well for the system.

  • FG to partner TUC on employment generation – Ngige

    FG to partner TUC on employment generation – Ngige

    The Minister of Labour and Employment, Sen. Chris Ngige, said on Monday that the Federal Government would partner Trade Union Congress (TUC) to create jobs for the teeming youths across the country.

    Ngige said this when he met with the leadership of the union in Abuja.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting was convened in respect of numerous issues bordering on labour administration in the country.

    Ngige said that the major focus of the present administration included job creation, security and anti-corruption war.

    “We are going to partner with you in terms of these three and especially in employment generation, as we are going to do massive employment in the country.

    “We are also going to do some social responsibility work in terms of gathering so many Nigerians in the social safety net, in order for their life to be meaningful.

    “At the same time, we want to touch the valuable groups — women and youths –; there are a lot youths that are unemployed now.

    “I want to assure you that in the 2016 budget of the Federal Government, we have mapped out many poverty intervention projects, especially those that will give jobs to our youths.”

    The minister said that if meaningful jobs were created in the country, the issue of insurgency would be a thing of the past.

    He said that the ministry would collaborate with the union in ensuring that machinery was put in motion for the government to create jobs for youths.

    He said that the issue of unemployment was what prompted President Muhammadu Buhari to rename the ministry as the Ministry of Labour and Employment.

    “Mr President wants the ministry to stand on what its name stands for, which is employment generation.”

    He also called on the union to assist government in fighting corrupting, saying that it was the union’s duty to assist the government block the leakages.

    “You must help the government to fight corruption, because this is why our resources are being mismanaged, stolen and frittered away over the years.”

    The minister said that the Federal Government would honour all outstanding arrears of promotion, adding that civil servants would be paid their dues within effective dates of their promotion.

    Ngige said that other issues pertaining to the welfare of workers such as casualisation, and contract staffing, among others, would be addressed.

    Earlier, TUC President Bobboi Kaigama, urged the minister to include the union as part of the National Labour Advisory Council.

    Kaigama also urged the minister to resolve the crisis in Owena Hotel, the issues of casualisation, the health sector crisis as well as the payment of outstanding arrears allowances owed to workers by the Federal Government.

  • FG’ll clampdown on pension scam perpetrators-Ngige

    FG’ll clampdown on pension scam perpetrators-Ngige

    The federal government has vowed to clampdown on any of its officials found to have tampered with pension funds.

    Such individuals, it said, would be made to face the full wrath of the law if found guilty.

    Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, made this known while speaking at the Pensioners’ Day in Abuja.

    The minister, who was represented by the Assistant Chief Labour Officer in the Ministry, Barrister Hauwa Abubakar, assured that the present administration would ensure that workers who had dedicated their productive years to the service of the nation would not be allowed to suffer.

    The minister spoke just as the pensioners asked the government put the payment of pensioners’ entitlement on the first line charge and ensure free medical treatment and other welfare package for pensioners above the age of 70.

    Speaking further, Ngige said that the Muhammadu Buhari-led government is committed to the welfare of Nigerians and will block all sources of leakages, while ensuring that all those culpable in cases of corruption are brought to book.

    He said: “We are all witnesses to the painful, pitiable and sorry sights of pensioners trying to get verified or accredited for their pensions nationwide. These pictures are more touching considering the fact that these worthy and industrious senior citizens have used their most productive years in the service of the nation. This ugly situation must not be allowed to continue under this present administration.

    “The pensioners suffered untold hardship not because of lack of funds to pay their hard earned entitlement, but largely due to the massive corruption of those who were saddled with this

    “In this regard, government is committed to ensuring that every wastage and leakage in the system is blocked and culpable persons quickly brought to book. This administration, with effect from the 2016 fiscal year, would start the implementation of its programme of giving social assistance to vulnerable citizens towards ensuring a more equitable and humane society.”

    In his address, National President of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Abel Afolayan, called on the federal government to place pensions on the first line charge to ensure prompt payment of pensions to pensioners as and when due.

    In his message read by his deputy Ayuba Dalhatu, the NUP president said despite efforts by the union to get government to pay the arrears of pension owed its members, the government has failed to fulfill its promise to effect the payment.

  • Employee compensation: Ngige seeks stiff sanction for defaulters

    Employee compensation: Ngige seeks stiff sanction for defaulters

    Minister of Labour and Employment Dr. Chris Ngige has advocated stiff sanction for employers who defaulted in registering their employees under the Employee Compensation Scheme.

    Ngige, who lamented low level of compliance with the provisions of the law establishing the scheme, urged the Nigeria Social insurance Trust Fund to come up with stiff sanctions for such defaulters.

    Speaking at a meeting with management staff of the NSITF in his office, he said there was the need to review the law establishing the scheme to include more stringent penalties for employers who fail to register their employees.

    The minister said the compliance level by employers to the scheme was not encouraging, stressing that the Federal Government would no longer tolerate non-compliance with the provisions of the Act establishing the scheme. Ngige pointed out that he was yet to hear of prosecution of employers for non-compliance.

    He directed the management of the NSITF to brief the Nigeria Governors Forum about the benefits derivable from allowing their workers to participate in the scheme.

    He said it would be a more effective way to get the states to come on board.

    “We have no option, but to push the ECS to performance level. There is no doubt that the idea is a great one. We must, however, ensure that Nigerians feel the positive impact of this initiative. I think that the management has to engage the governors through the governors forum, so that we can explain the advantages of this scheme to governors.

    “I believe that stipend to be paid on employees’ salaries are small to the advantages that the scheme gives to workers, especially when they are injured in the course of work. I believe every governor would be happy to hear about the numerous advantages that their workers stand to benefit by joining the scheme,” Ngige said.

    He maintained that the operations of the fund could be enhanced through an inter-agency collaboration with agencies like the National Directorate for Employment (NDE), noting that such collaboration could provide  the fund with much needed data to expand its frontiers.

     

     

  • Senate under pressure over Ngige, Amaechi, Shittu

    Senate under pressure over Ngige, Amaechi, Shittu

    Ogbeh, Ibeto, Sirika, Alhassan, Udoma may ‘bow and go’

    Ex-Rivers governor writes Senate on enquiry 

    Will the Senate change its parliamentary tradition or ask ex-lawmakers who are ministerial nominees to take a bow?

    That was the question  at the weekend ahead of tomorrow’s screening of the nominees.

    Senate President Bukola Saraki is under pressure to stick to the tradition, it was learnt.

    But some senators from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are pushing for “an open and equal screening”.

    It was gathered that the leadership of the Senate may take a decision before the screening opens.

    Saraki is likely to present the issue before the Executive Session prior to the screening.

    Eight of the 21 nominees are former lawmakers.

    They are: Sen. Udoma Udo-Udoma; Sen. Aisha Alhassan; Sen. Chris Ngige; Sen. Hadi Sirika; Rt. Hon Rotimi Amaechi (a former Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly); Mr. Audu Ogbeh (a former Deputy Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly); Hon. Ahmed Musa Ibeto (a former member of the House of Representatives); and Adebayo Shittu (a former member of the Oyo State House of Assembly).

    It was learnt that many senators supported “parliamentary tradition” for the automatic clearance of the eight former lawmakers.

    Also yesterday, the Senate re-echoed the statement by its Adhoc Media Committee Chairman Dino Melaye on the need for two senators to endorse a nominee from their state.

    This followed the apprehension that some of the ministerial nominees will not be able to scale the screening hurdle, following their apparent likelihood of not getting the endorsement of two senators from their states.

    On its Twitter handle @NGRSenate yesterday, it said: “The tradition of two senators having to endorse a ministerial nominee is not sacrosanct and can be waived, if a nominee passes other criteria.”

    A principal officer said: “The Senate President is under pressure to break the tie and provide direction for senators who are divided on some nominees, especially the former lawmakers.

    “Saraki’s personal relationship with some of these former lawmakers has made the pressure on the Senate more challenging.

    “But the main issue is whether or not to give parliamentary waiver to ex-lawmakers who have been nominated as ministers.

    “Some senators are insisting on the adoption of the parliamentary tradition to screen and clear the eight ex-lawmakers. Normally by our tradition, the eight nominees are expected to take a bow after explaining their plans for the nation.

    “These senators have warned against the consequences of changing the tradition by the 8th Senate because it could be anybody’s turn tomorrow.

    “They said if the Senate played into the hands of some politicians and governors, it might affect the prospect of some lawmakers in the future.”

    Responding to a question, the officer added: “These senators are saying that we should grill these ex-lawmakers on their vision for the country but they are making a strong case for automatic clearance.

    “Some of them cited the row which the screening and clearance of ex-Minister Musiliu Obanikoro generated and how ex-Senate President David Mark stuck to the parliamentary tradition.”

    Another Senator said: “We have received many petitions against some of these nominees, including some of these eight lawmakers. A few Senators are demanding the waiver of the parliamentary tradition to enable the Senate leave the screening open.

    “These petitions have been referred to the relevant committee of the Senate for consideration.

    “We are looking into these arguments which have put the President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, under pressure.”

    Amaechi is said to have written to the Senate to stay action on any issue emanating from the Commission of Inquiry set up by the government of Rivers State.

    He said since a matter was pending in court on the inquiry, it would be subjudice for the Senate to dabble in it.

    A source in the Senate said: “Amaechi’s counsel has written the President of the Senate on the need to avoid consideration of a subjudicial matter.

    “You know the Senate has a procedure of not treating any matter before a court.”