www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/204132-remain-strike-like-i-cant-sell-pay-salaries-fayose-tells-striking-workers.html

Workers in Ekiti State on Thursday began an
indefinite strike over government’s inability to pay
five months salary arrears and for failing to refund
deductions made from their December 2015 salaries.
The strike brought the state capital to a halt as
government offices and public schools remained shut.

But the state governor said for as long there was no
money to pay salaries, he would have to wait for the
workers to return.

The state councils of the Nigeria Labour Congress
(NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and Joint
Negotiation Council (JNC) had on Tuesday last week
issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the government to pay the December deductions amounting to N512million or face industrial action.

But the strike was overtaken by the national strike
called by the NLC which was called off on Monday.
Thursday’s strike followed the expiration of a fresh
24-hour ultimatum on Wednesday, after the
government’s failure to accede to the workers’
demands.

Other demands of the workers include the release of
the staff audit and verification conducted in April
2015; disclosure of the monthly internally generated
revenue; payment of arrears of salaries, pension and
gratuities; payment of September 2014 salary to
primary school teachers; and payment of 2014 and
2015 leave bonuses.

The workers are also asking the government to
implement the promotion for 2013, 2014, 2015;
approval of inter-cadre transfer; remission of 10
percent IGR to local government and stoppage of
Joint Allocation Committee account; resuscitation of
LG staff pension fund and release of running grants to secondary schools and local governments.

“Your Excellency Sir, we have remained calm since
these days hoping that respite will soon come our
ways, but hope is becoming a mirage. Besides, there
is a limit to endurance,” said the labour leaders, in a
letter addressed to the state governor, Ayo Fayose.
The governor, while responding to the strike, said the
state only got N751million allocation from the
federation account.

“I know workers have not been coming to work, but I
don’t have the moral right to stop them . But I can
only deploy what I receive from the federation
account,” Mr. Fayose said.

“If workers want to go on strike, I sympathize with
them but we will be here waiting till when they come
back. I can’t sell myself to pay workers. Even the
government house where I live does not have diesel
to power generator at times.

“I want the workers and members of the public to
show understanding. This is not about Ekiti, it is an
issue that affects all of us.”

Hmm