Minimum Wage Payment: FG Assures Protesting PCC Staff

• 3 unions picket Finance Ministry, chides OAGF

BY COBHAM NSA – Currently facing numerous threats of strike by aggrieved public service workers and unions across the country, the Federal Government is hard pressed to pay staff of the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) about N872 million as outstanding entitlements and consequential adjustment of their 18 months minimum wage arrears.

A concerned Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed could not help but give this assurance on Wednesday when three trade unions in the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) picketed her office in Abuja.

Members of the Nigerian Civil Service Union (NCSU); Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (SSAN); and Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria (PASAN) of the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) had stormed the Federal Ministry of Finance premises in their numbers demanding their entitlements be paid without further delay.

However, to douse the growing tension of strike actions that now haunts the government daily, Mrs Ahmed, represented by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Finance, Mr Aliyu Ahmed, told the protesting unions that approval and authorization have already been given to the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) to release the contentious N872 million and 18 months arrears for payment.

The Minister, who confirmed having received alert for the payment, said; “It is now back to us here in the Ministry to finalize arrangements and make the payments to the PCC.”

“I want to tell you that please give us the next 48 hours”, Mrs Ahmed pleaded with the aggrieved unions.

The protesting workers, led by the Vice Chairman, Nigerian Civil Service Union (NCSU), Comrade Isa Usman Degri, expressed sadness that the Commission staff were yet to receive the new minimum wage package since its implementation commenced several months ago.

According to him, “minimum wage is yet to start in Public Complaints Commission for the past 18 months. Many people were paid their arrears in December 2019. From 2019 December till now is about nine (9) months, and the implementation is yet to start in PCC”.

Further lamenting their plight, the angry workers’ spokesperson said that having worked for “this country, we can never suffer exclusion or be denied our entitlements. It is unacceptable. We will continue to do this until we are heard.

“If there are other agencies that have Nigerians as workers that are yet to start implementing the minimum wage, know that we are going to come back for them. But today as we are here for PCC”.

Comrade Degri said they had seriously hoped that things would change going forward given the negotiations held with representatives of Federal Ministry of Finance and the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) as well as the Labour and Employment Ministry, adding; “We had discussed and signed an agreement to that effect.”

In amplifying their grievances, Degri said it was unfortunate that after signing the agreement, “nobody called us from Federal Ministry of Finance and OAGF as follow up for implementation. And almost two weeks went by without any forward movement in the agreement process.

“So having waited patiently, with nobody saying anything, we now deemed it fit to take a step further; come here; and deliver a letter on our position.”

By submissions in their protest letter, the workers are demanding that N872 million and consequential adjustments of the 18 months arrears be released for payment with immediate effect in order for normal working activities to resume in PCC offices across the country.