The Abia State Chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress has confronted the state governor, Alex Otti, for the ongoing verification that has reportedly caused many workers to go unpaid for over seven months.
This information was revealed in a circular dated May 11 and seen by our correspondent on Sunday.
It was signed by the state chairman, Okoro Ogbonnaya, and the state secretary, Emma Alozie.
The congress instructed the state workforce not to participate in the verification until issues related to the planned exercise are resolved.
“The State Council of Congress questions what happened to the first verification exercise in the state, where many workers have not been verified and their salaries have been withheld by the government for over seven months now,” the circular read.
The directive followed an earlier official statement from the office of the Abia State Head of Service instructing workers across ministries, parastatals, and the 17 local councils to undergo online verification from May 10 to May 31, 2024.
The congress also questioned why workers are being subjected to another verification when many of them have not been able to receive their salaries for over seven months due to issues from previous exercises.
The NLC criticized the government's latest action as being insensitive to the workers' plight and showing total disregard for labor in the state.
“It is disrespectful for the government to organize such a sensitive program for our members without consulting Labour, the umbrella body for the workers.
“Labour sees this exercise as a step backwards from the governor's initial vision to identify ghost workers in the system.
“Another verification exercise a few months after the first one is against the interests of workers, especially considering the economic hardship they are experiencing with their low salaries,” the circular added.
The Labour leadership also criticized the government's decision to conduct the exercise without consulting or informing the NLC leadership in the state.
