Worried by the non- abatement of the current impasse between the FCTA and the area council chairmen in the FCT-Abuja, the FCT Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) has embarked on indefinite strike over none release of December 2021 allocation of the area councils by the FCTA.
NULGE FCT chapter in a genuine efforts aimed at amicable settlement of matter, met with the chairmen of the six (6) area councils on Wednesday, February16, 2022.
Addressing journalist in Kuje on the issue, Thursday, the FCT State President of NULGE, Comrade Ibrahim Abdullahi Kabi said at the end of their meeting it was agreed that the FCT IRS, IGR be fully released, and that the December 2021 allocation from FAAC to the area councils held by the FCTA be released while the rights and functions of the area councils as conferred under the Fourth Schedule to the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) be respected by the FCTA.
The NULGE president added that, NULGE bearing in mind the welfare of its members, took the initiative to meet with several critical stakeholders in the FCT administration to see how the discord would be amicably settled.
However, to NULGE’s consternation, the strife has continued unabated and there is no sign in sight that it would soon end.
He said, sadly, as a result of the deadlock, area council workers in the FCT-Abuja have continued to surfer untold hardship since the beginning of this year, as no meaningful efforts is in sight to see how our January salaries would be paid.
NULGE is therefore called on the FCTA to ensure the immediate release of the area councils December 2021 allocation from FAAC to enable them pay January salary to its workers.
It also demanded that 10 per cent of the FCT IRS accruing to the area councils be released with a template of how to pay the area councils the backlog and arrears.
Comrade Kabi maintained that the only way out of the recurrent infighting between local governments in Nigeria and their various state governments still remained the grant of autonomy to the local governments, stressing that this will an end to the situation where local governments are seen or treated as mere appendages (MDA’s) of states.