PASAN, NASS Staff Suspend Strike

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  • Threaten to resume action July ending if…

BY EDMOND ODOK – One week after embarking on an indefinite strike to press home demands for the payment of outstanding allowances, National Assembly workers, on the platform of the Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria (PASAN), have temporarily suspended their action.

The indefinite strike, which commenced penultimate Monday, had gained momentum on Thursday, June 9, 2022, when hundreds of Retirees and Legislative Aides joined the peaceful protest.

However, addressing the workers at the entrance of the National Assembly on Tuesday morning, the PASAN Chairman, Comrade Sunday Sabiyi, said they agreed to suspend the strike following some agreements reached with the leadership of the Senate.

Comrade Sabiyi warned that the workers would readily return to the trenches and resume the industrial action if the agreements reached were not implemented by the end of July 2022.

Recalled that in protesting against the National Assembly management, the workers displayed some placards with different inscriptions such as; ‘N25bn releases for arrears of staff salaries and wages missing’; ‘Stoppage of existing allowances approved by both Houses of NASS is a contravention of the law of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’; and ‘CNA deceiving political leaders and staff’.

Others read thus; ‘Training funds for past 22 years embezzled’; ‘PASAN demands full implementation of NASS conditions of and MoU’; ‘NASS that makes and breaks laws’; ‘Lack of motivation limits the ability of support staff in the business of lawmaking’; and ‘Where is monetization policy, each Permanent Secretary has 7 official cars.’

In their anger, the protesting workers alleged that the Clerk of the National Assembly (CNA) gave accounts of some doubtful expenditures including; N452.760 million allegedly spent on maintenance of Perkins 2000KVA as well as N339.171 million for overhauling of the water tank.

One of the indicting documents displayed by the agitated staff read thus; “NASS management contract awards corrupted over-influenced contracts award by the Clerk of National Assembly in Annex, generator maintenance 2000KVA Perkins.”

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