LABOUR N39bn loan to Discos contradicts NUP demands immediate disbursement of N78bn for Airways pensioners privatization policy – TUC

The National Executive Council of Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has condemned the provision of N39 billion to privatized electricity distribution companies, saying the move by the Federal Government is against its privatization policy.

The union, in a communiqué at the end of its meeting in Lagos, considered the pronouncement by the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, in Kano that government would give loans to the Distribution Companies (DISCOs) to meet electricity meter supply as a contradiction of privatization policy.

The minister was quoted to have said the fund was meant to help the distribution companies bridge over 10 million metering gap in ensuring uninterrupted power generation and distribution.

But the union demanded that government should not use public funds to fund private businesses or alternatively, reverse the privatization of the power sector as a failed policy.

It also frowned at the Public Private Partnership being implemented in the health sector which it noted, has deviated from the original blue print of the 2004 working document, indicating that the critical health sector is now being commercialised.

TUC warned that the consequence was that common Nigerians would be deprived of health care services.

The union also expressed concern over the lip service on the patronage of Made-inNigeria goods, condemning the use of foreign materials by government agencies such as the military and paramilitary. The Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP) Airways branch has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to prevail on the Presidential Initiative on Continuous Audit (PICA) to commence the disbursement of the N78 billion for pensioners of the defunct Nigerian Airways Limited (NAL).

National chairman of the pensioners, Comrade Sam Nzene, in a statement, said they were aware that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had given approval for the release of the money, but wondered why the fund was yet to be disbursed.

He said that there were 5,700 NAL pensioners and workers at the time of its liquidation, but regretted that many of them had died while awaiting the release of the funds.

Nzene said the Federal Government had only paid the retirees five years pension arrears out of 25 years pension backlog.

He urged the government to pay the retired workers the outstanding pension arrears which has accumulated up to N78 billion.

He said, “This issue has lingered for over 10 years now. Since the liquidation of Nigerian Airways. While the expatriate workers of Nigerian Airways were paid 25 years pension as payoff, their Nigerian counterparts were only paid 5 years. We call on President Buhari to look at the plight of our members and prevail on the Ministry of Finance to begin the immediate disbursement of the fund.”

The Nigerian Airways was liquidated in May 2003 by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration, but the airline ceased to exist from September 13, 2004.

The ex-workers said it is sad that 13 years after, the exworkers are still struggling to get their entitlements.