NAN-H-47
Payment
Usman Aliyu
Ilorin, Feb. 15, 2017 (NAN) The Ilorin West Local Government of Kwara on Wednesday commenced the payment of salary arrears for street sweepers and casual workers in the council.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the payment was in fulfilment of the council’s pledge on Saturday when the sweepers staged a protest to the residence of the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki.
The Chairman of the Transitional Implementation Committee in the council, Alhaji Abdulhameed Alli, had pledged to pay protesting workers within a week.
Addressing the workers before the commencement of the payment at Ajikobi Microfinance Bank in Ilorin, Alli said that each of the sweepers would get N25,000 pending a normalisation of disparity in salary scale of workers with the same qualifications.
He said that there were anomalies in the appointment of some workers which a committee had been set up to look into.
According to Alli, the payment of N25,000 flat is to cushion the suffering of the workers as a result of the non-payment of the salaries.
He said that a new letter of appointment stating the salary scale and conditions of service would be issued immediately the normalisation was concluded.
The chairman urged the workers to be calm pending the time that the committee would conclude the exercise.
Alli expressed dismay at the mode of their appointment where there was wide gap in salaries of sweepers on the same grade.
He assured them that no one would be laid off in the course of the exercise.
Responding, the Supervisor of the street sweepers, Alhaji Abdulwasiu Alata, commended the chairman for fulfilling his promise.
Alata commended the intervention of the Senate President and Gov. Abdulfatah Ahmed that gave rise to the commencement of payment.
He also expressed satisfaction with the plan of the council to regularise the appointment and salary of the workers. (NAN)
AUO/ORO/TA
Edited by Razak Owolabi/Tajudeen Atitebi