ECONOMIC activities were brought to a halt in Owerri, Imo State when angry workers of parastatals and agencies took to the streets to demand their salaries arrears from government.

The protesters were dressed in black attires, wept
openly as they marched through major roads and
claimed Governor Rochas Okorocha was responsible
for their plight.

Some of the protesters, who spoke with Daily Sun, said
they decided to wear black to show solidarity with
some of their colleagues from the judiciary who died
on Monday out of frustration due to nine months
salary arrears…

Daily Sun investigation indicated that departments
of state parastatals owed salary backlog of salary
include Water Board (12 months), Library Board
(eight months), Due Process (nine months), Imo
Marketing Board (10 months), Imo Specialist Hospital
(13 months), Hospital Management Board (nine
months) and Imo ADP (10 months).

State Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC),
Austin Chilakpu, explained that workers staged the
protest because they doubted labour’s ability of bring
succour to them.

He disclosed that the leadership of NLC had, on No­
vember 13, promised workers that the state
government would pay their salaries on November 17
based on the agreement reached with the government
but it failed. However, workers who eventually ended
their protest at the Government House disagreed with
the promise of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Kingsley
Uju, who addressed the protesters on behalf of
Okorocha.

“What is happening is regrettable; it is not the
making of the state governor. Efforts are in top gear
to pay all of you; just give us till next week,” Uju
said.

In a related development, former deputy speaker of
the House of Representatives, Emeka Ihedioha has
expressed shock and disbelief over media reports that
Imo State Government has earmarked over N600
million for Christmas decorations.

Ihedioha queried why, “at this critical period when
Imo citizens are going through untold hardship
arising from over 20 months of unpaid salary arrears
and pensions, grounding of the 27 local government
councils; several unresolved industrial disputes;
infrastructural collapse, the government would
embark on such inciting and frivolous window
dressing.’’

 OAM4J, Mynd44

Vicboi1:
This man is so Evil if anyone saw what happened yesterday u would cry Rochas may God in heaven punish u and ur generation may your wife cry as the women cry may your children die of hunger how can a man be so evil not to even pay people who worked for u if it's him would he be happy I wish that this man and all his family members die in 2016 and they body spat on

biafranqueen:
Did Imolites really vote this man in when he was owing you 5 months already

ruggedboy01: