PDP Condemns Amosun’s planned sack of Workers
The Presidential Campaign Organisation in Ogun State have noted with disappointment the now familiar reference of the Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun to ‘overbloated’ workforce in the state’s civil service with a promise to downsize if he is re-elected in the 2015 general elections.
We consider this alleged plan as heartless and condemn it in strong terms because it will create more social, economic and security challenges in the state and throw many families into hardships which they did not bargain for.
We are of the opinion that retrenchment of workers is the greatest height of insincerity which portrays the Ogun State government as being grossly insensitive and incompetent, at a time when global best practices in public administration is about putting many more people to work as a means of empowerment and reducing poverty.
To have contemplated such, and brazenly infer that at meetings with various workers’ unions portrays Governor Amosun as not only wicked but also inhuman in a continuous display of high handedness and blatant disregard for the peoples’ welfare.
We found it hard to believe that a government which on several occasions publicly acknowledged that its Internally Generated Revenue alone had hit the N6 billion mark would complain of inability to pay workers’ salaries and failed in its statutory duty to remit deductions into cooperatives societies and pension contributions, will resolve that the only available option left is to contemplate a mass sack of workers. This is gross incompetence as we believe that the total take-home package of all the workers in the state is far less than this amount, and added to this is the monthly allocation from the Federation Account.
The PDPPCO sympathize with the Ogun State workers, especially on account of the untold hardships they have been subjected to and disdain in which they have been treated under the Senator Ibikunle Amosun led administration. We are aware of the total neglect of the welfare of Ogun State workers and disregard for labour laws; the stoppage of the Christmas bonus, 13th month payment; accumulated unpaid leave bonuses and allowances; delay in promotion; unremitted Cooperative and pension deductions from workers’ salaries which had denied them access to the much needed loans with which they can plan to improve on their living standards, promising that a PDP government when elected into office will rectify all these and redress the injustice.
It is disheartening that the workers who have continued to give their best towards the development of the state and making their society a better place are being treated with so much hatred and repaid with unspeakable anti-labour laws by the state government under the APC administration and Senator Amosun.
Rather than downsize, the PDP shall employ more people and create many more jobs to reduce the acute level of unemployment in the state by expanding the scope of government business and attract more investors to the state.
Steve Oliyide
Director of Media and Publicity,
Presidential Campaign Organisation,
Ogun State.
