THE WEAPONIZATION OF WORKERS SALARY IN NIGERIA: Osun State as a case study in Brevity.
In Nigeria, it has now become a culture or the prevailing trends among state governments or better still state governors to either tarry a while before paying their workers or blatantly refused to pay them for months. Even those who are paying among them are doing so irregularly such that if a worker receives his or her wages this month, there is a possibility that in the next two or three months he has to pin his hope on God.
This act of wickedness by these governors are being done with impunity and only few of them are concerned by the plight of their workers.
Since the inception of the present regime from 2015 till date, Nigeria economy has witnessed a lot of meltdown due to the fall in the price of Nigeria only means of getting foreign exchange which is crude oil, coupled with the extravagant way of life of our rulers in which there are no plans for the future for the country in the event of the crashing of the mainstay of our economy.
Nigeria is not the only country affected by the slump in the price of crude oil in the international markets but our problems are lack of clear cut agenda even when it was being sold exorbitantly. We can say with all certainty that the current problem is as a result of our failure to prepare for the rainy day.
However, the governors in Nigeria have turned workers salary payments to look as if the workers are been doing a big favour, such that the workers have to resorted to begging them before being paid, it is so bad that the workers are now helpless in this regard to the extent that the governors have to blackmail them into slashing their salaries or sack them. As the saying goes, half bread is better than none: that is what is going on in Osun and some other states at present.
Meanwhile, Osun state have started paying full salaries of workers, thanks to the coming governorship election in the state as the outgoing regime is putting another candidate forward to continue where present one stops.
Osun state together with other states of the federation have all collected billions of Naira as bailouts with express instruction to offsets the backlog of salaries owed by them, but these governors refused and used the bailouts to pursue many white elephants project like construction of flyover where there are virtually no vehicular traffic and other misplaced priorities called infrastructure.
The question is, must a governor perform his duty because of the forthcoming election? Must full salary payment tied to an election? Must governors weaponize payment of salary such that the workers becomes helpless and beg for their wages? The answers is NO!
The governor of Osun State has been paying some of the workers half of their salaries for the past three and a half years, but election is fast approaching, the regime needs the workers and the other citizens vote, now the salaries are now being paid in full without any conditions attached to it.
And from the look of things, to the discerning mind, this is a bait! This is sad! Even the president of the Republic told these governors to pay their workers but since many of them are emperors, they do as they like be a they are unquestionably.
Moreover, what are the assurances that this windfall of salary payments will continue unabated if this party is elected again? Nobody knows but I know that peoples concerned would eventually decide where to pitch their tent on election day.
Having said all these, the governors needs to know that their action is wicked, crude and inhumane because these workers worked for their wages and therefore deserved to be paid, moreso, it is their right and not a privilege.
In the same vein, the governors needs to know that salary payment is a law and therefore their failure to pay the workers as at when due is flouting and going against the law of the land in which if we were to be in a saner climes would have earn them a fine or prison sentence(s), but this is Nigeria, where governors are like absolute monarch who answers to no one.
Finally, I will implore everyone, especially the workers to have a deep thought about who to vote for in the coming election in Osun State, because he who wear the shoe knows where it pinches. This election has presented an ample opportunity for all to decides who run our affairs in the next four years. Let everyone comes out to vote as the failure to do so could be catastrophic for all of us.
Picture credit goes to https://gridnigeria.com/what-type-of-salary-do-you-earn/
This act of wickedness by these governors are being done with impunity and only few of them are concerned by the plight of their workers.
Since the inception of the present regime from 2015 till date, Nigeria economy has witnessed a lot of meltdown due to the fall in the price of Nigeria only means of getting foreign exchange which is crude oil, coupled with the extravagant way of life of our rulers in which there are no plans for the future for the country in the event of the crashing of the mainstay of our economy.
Nigeria is not the only country affected by the slump in the price of crude oil in the international markets but our problems are lack of clear cut agenda even when it was being sold exorbitantly. We can say with all certainty that the current problem is as a result of our failure to prepare for the rainy day.
However, the governors in Nigeria have turned workers salary payments to look as if the workers are been doing a big favour, such that the workers have to resorted to begging them before being paid, it is so bad that the workers are now helpless in this regard to the extent that the governors have to blackmail them into slashing their salaries or sack them. As the saying goes, half bread is better than none: that is what is going on in Osun and some other states at present.
Meanwhile, Osun state have started paying full salaries of workers, thanks to the coming governorship election in the state as the outgoing regime is putting another candidate forward to continue where present one stops.
Osun state together with other states of the federation have all collected billions of Naira as bailouts with express instruction to offsets the backlog of salaries owed by them, but these governors refused and used the bailouts to pursue many white elephants project like construction of flyover where there are virtually no vehicular traffic and other misplaced priorities called infrastructure.
The question is, must a governor perform his duty because of the forthcoming election? Must full salary payment tied to an election? Must governors weaponize payment of salary such that the workers becomes helpless and beg for their wages? The answers is NO!
The governor of Osun State has been paying some of the workers half of their salaries for the past three and a half years, but election is fast approaching, the regime needs the workers and the other citizens vote, now the salaries are now being paid in full without any conditions attached to it.
And from the look of things, to the discerning mind, this is a bait! This is sad! Even the president of the Republic told these governors to pay their workers but since many of them are emperors, they do as they like be a they are unquestionably.
Moreover, what are the assurances that this windfall of salary payments will continue unabated if this party is elected again? Nobody knows but I know that peoples concerned would eventually decide where to pitch their tent on election day.
Having said all these, the governors needs to know that their action is wicked, crude and inhumane because these workers worked for their wages and therefore deserved to be paid, moreso, it is their right and not a privilege.
In the same vein, the governors needs to know that salary payment is a law and therefore their failure to pay the workers as at when due is flouting and going against the law of the land in which if we were to be in a saner climes would have earn them a fine or prison sentence(s), but this is Nigeria, where governors are like absolute monarch who answers to no one.
Finally, I will implore everyone, especially the workers to have a deep thought about who to vote for in the coming election in Osun State, because he who wear the shoe knows where it pinches. This election has presented an ample opportunity for all to decides who run our affairs in the next four years. Let everyone comes out to vote as the failure to do so could be catastrophic for all of us.
Picture credit goes to https://gridnigeria.com/what-type-of-salary-do-you-earn/
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete我们的律师楼拥有15年的执业经验。我们处理民事纠纷，商业纠纷，追讨债务，遗产分配，遗嘱，离婚案，抚养权，领养小孩，拟商业合约，拟买卖合约，银行贷款，法律咨询，法律顾问，等法律事务。全马各地的案件皆有处理。加入我们“法律与你同行”面子书的群组。我们为无数的平民百姓免费解除了各类的法律困扰。
ReplyDelete阅读我们的法律文章: https://www.kuekong.com/