Bleak sallah awaits council workers in Edo North over half salary policy

By DADA AYOKHAI

Hard times awaits local government workers in Edo North with the prospect of a bleak Sallah festivity due to the policy of half salary adopted by the various council areas in the senatorial district.

Many of the affected council workers, majority of them Muslims expecting to celebrate the Sallah festivity in grand style with their family and friends, have been forced to scale down.   

Checks by our roving reporter shows that all the six  local government areas in Edo North district are said to be deeply involved in the payment of  per cent of their workers' monthly salary.  

This policy, according to some of the affected workers who spoke on conditions of anonymities, started with the shortfall in federal allocations and has been going on for more than a year now. 

Though quite embarrassing and nightmarish, the workers said they are hopeless about the situation, stressing that their umbrella union, NULGE, is even more confused and helpless to the plight of the workers.

Further findings show that Etsako West council workers are paid 60 per cent of their monthly emoluments. A similar situation obtains in the other five local governments in the district. 

Even more baffling is the fact that after expunging the names of political office holders and appointees from the payroll, the councils are still finding it difficult to settle the monthly emoluments of their workers. 

Consequently, the workers have sent a passionate Save our Soul (SOS) message to the state government to first draw attention to their plight and, secondly, to demand for an urgent and critical examination of the council's books with a view to arresting the situation and making sure that workers are paid what is due to them every month.