By Kula Tersoo
Makurdi
Benue state government and the organised labour have reached an agreement concerning the much troubled bailout funds for payment of salary arrears.
In a press statement issued by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and ICT, Mr. Tahav Agerzua, both government and the organised labour agreed to suspend the ongoing staff verification exercise and with immediate effect commence payment of the salary arrears of the state and local government workers “without prejudice to the ongoing biometrics exercise whose final outcome would be used in subsequent salary payments.”
According to the release, the agreement was signed on behalf of the state government by Barrister Targema Takema, on behalf of the Organised Labour Unions by Comrade Godwin Anya, Chairman, NLC; Comrade Ordue Tartenger, Chairman, TUC; Comrade Philip Ter Nongo, Chairman, JPSNC.
Earlier, labour had issued a 72-hour ultimatum to Governor Samuel Ortom to pay the bailout funds meant to clear salary allowances or face “industrial action.”
In a joint communiqué issued by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Joint Pensions and Salaries Negotiation Committee (JPSNC) in Makurdi, labour had appreciated the state government for accessing the bailout funds to settle salary arrears to workers, but rejected the idea of screening the workers as a prerequisite to the payments.
It stressed that the said bailout fund was assessed based on the payment vouchers of the months in arrears; “therefore, the fund is the representation of the financial implication of salary arrears owed Benue workers.”
