Nitel workers protest in Nigeria

A rally has been setup by workers of the Nigerian Telecommunication Commission (NITEL) in Abuja to protest management’s failure to pay salaries for nine months. The protest also called for the removal of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Hajiya Zainab Sa’ab.

Protesters were led by the President of the Senior Staff Association of Communication Transportation and Corporation (SSACTAC) Union, NITEL Branch, Elias Kazzah.

Kazzah alleges that workers had been denied their salaries for almost a year, while management spends money on less important issues.

He explained that the presidential task-force on the restructuring of NITEL in 2010 retained 380 people as transitional staffers and made available money for payment of salaries for six months. He also said because the restructuring could not be completed within the six months period, such staffers had to continue to work.

Kazzah expressed regret that staff had to work for nine months without salaries. “Each time we called on the management they would say there is no money. Unfortunately when the BPE (Bureau for Public Enterprises) asked for the statement of account we discovered there was about 600 million in the company account. This money can cover our outstanding salary. Why not pay us?

The CEO has bluntly refused to pay us these outstanding salaries despite the availability of funds; but she has engaged on some kind of unnecessary spending up to the tune of N800 million without considering the welfare of workers.”

Emmanuel Adu, the National Secretary of the Union said, “We should not be passing the buck to federal government; we should be able to pay our salaries. NITEL must be paying their workers’ salary not federal government.”

At the time of writing, members of NITEL management were not available for comment.

Segun Adekoye