Street sweepers protest non-payment of salary
Street sweepers in Benin yesterday staged a protest demanding the payment of their outstanding salaries running into six months.
The protesters who matched to the Secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Benin, said they were employed by the government which had not paid in the past six months.
One of the protesters, Mary Omoregie who spoke to journalists, said they could no longer bear the The Secretary to the Ebonyi State Government, Prof. Bernard Ifeanyi Odo on Esther Monday resigned his appointment.
Governor David Umahi initially rejected his resignation on the ground that it was done on a public holiday, and expressed shock that Odo should resign in the first place, but Umahi has appointed Dr. Hygienus Nwokwu as the new SSG.
Odo’s resignation and appointment came when Nwokwu’s about 500 hardship. “I work in New Lagos Road. Let the government please pay us. One of us was involved in an accident while working. Things have not been easy for us,” she said, adding that they protested to the Government House last week but were begged to go home that they would pay them.
Another sweeper, Mama Okoyomon, said they had become debtors in order to meet their obligations as parents. She said, “Since October 2017, we have not been paid. Some of us are single mothers and we cannot provide food or buy books for our children anymore.” indigenes of Ezza extraction held a solidarity rally in support of Umahi’s administration.
Prof. Odo, in his three-page resignation letter which was made available to Daily Trust, accused the state governor of not creating a conducive environment for him to operate during his stay in office as the SSG.
“The way been run in our the administration past two years has has
Responding, Governor Godwin Obaseki said that the government was not indebted to the sweepers as they were not government employees.
Speaking through his Special Adviser on Media and Communication Strategy, Crusoe Osagie, Obaseki said the sweepers were employed by contractors hired by the state government.
“There is no direct business relationship or employer-employee relationship between the government and the people who sweep the streets,” he said. not allowed members of the executive council to sincerely express our views on sensitive policy matters. A few who tried to air contrary views were instantly perceived as not supporting the administration.
“Because of this, majority of the council members resorted to praise singing and dramatizing of council procedures to guarantee their daily bread. Subservience doesn’t equate genuine fellowship,” he stated.