Legislative Aides Protest Unpaid N7bn Severance Allowances by N’Assembly Management
Omololu Ogunmade
Legislative aides in both the Senate and House of Representatives yesterday staged a protest at the central lobby of the National Assembly over non-payment of their gratuity and duty tour allowances (DTA) amounting to N7 billion.
But a detachment of policemen from National Assembly division quickly dispatched the protesters and prevented them from making any public address.
The police team along with other senior security officers of the National Assembly only allowed them to send representatives to the office of the Deputy Clerk of the National Assembly to register their grievances.
Some of the
legislative aides who later spoke with journalists, alleged that the National Assembly management has failed to pay all the 2,500 legislative aides who served in the seventh National Assembly their severance allowances and DTA between N1.5 million to N3 million per aide depending on grade levels and steps.
They alleged that based on information at their disposal, the sum of N7 billion meant for the payment had been released to the management of National Assembly by the federal Ministry of Finance last month without any preparedness for payment.
“Our protest is all about prolonged delay we are experiencing in the payment of our severance allowances by the management of National Assembly even weeks after payment of similar allowances to all the 469 federal legislators who served in the seventh assembly.
“We believe that the protest, though aborted, has sent the needed message to them that we are ready for showdown with them any time from now if we are not paid the money in this first week of September,” they said.
But in an internal circular later issued from the office of the Director, Personal Management of the National Assembly, the management said the money was not yet released from the Ministry of Finance as claimed by the aggrieved aides.
The acting Director, M. A. Abubakar, who issued the circular on behalf of the Clerk of the National Assembly, Salisu Maikasuwa, said: “I am directed to inform all legislative aides to exercise more patience regarding their payment of severance gratuity and duty tour allowances as the management is making assiduous efforts to get the monies released from the Ministry of Finance.
“I also urge you to maintain the existing good working relationship between National Assembly management and the legislative aides for an enduring welfare of the legislative aides. I wish to assure you that as soon as the monies are released, payment will commence without delay as all preparations have been concluded.”