AS the crisis between the organised labour and the Kogi state government persist, the workers on Tuesday threatened to embark on mass action if their present condition persist.
The people noted that the state government had continued to or handle their welfare with levity and was not ready to reason with them.
A statement signed by Secretaries of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Olakunle Faniyi, Trade Union Congress (TUC), James Kolawole and their Joint Public Service Negotiating Council (JPSNC) counterpart, Isa Abubakar, said workers could no longer tolerate the insensitiveness and callous attitude of the government against its members.
The unions described the present administration of Alhaji Yahaya Bello as the “most insensitive government” in the history of Nigeria, particularly with the recent directive issued by the state Commissioner of Education, Dr Sunday Tolorunleke ordering striking workers to resume or be sacked.
The organised labour said the insensitivity of the government was evident in threats of sack coming after the death of Edward Soje, one of their colleagues, who committed suicide over failure to meet financial challenges.
According to the Statement the Head of Service (HOS), Mrs Deborah Ogunmola, had confirmed that the government was owing him nine months salaries at the time he committed suicide.
It stated that many others have been dying silently due to nonpayment of salary, wondering why government failed to show compassion by commiserating with the organised labour for loss of their loved ones but a sack threat.
The organised labour said, “The organised labour therefore called on the entire workforce of Kogi State to ignore the threat of the government and be prepared to come out in their large numbers in the proposed mass action to tell the government that power actually lies in the hand of the people.
“Remember that government threatened you not join and you joined the strike, they threatened no-work no-pay and you ignored them and now they have come with their antics of mass sack which has no basis in the civil service law and other extant laws in the country.
“So, be bold enough to ignore this threat of sack as any attempt to return to work as threatened by government will mean surrendering our freedom as government has refused to accord us our rights as enshrined in the Constitution and international statue books.”
The statement asked government to explain to the people of Kogi State what it has done with the statutory allocation of N4.2 billion it received in September 2017.
“For the avoidance of doubt therefore, it is the right of workers to embark on strike when their employers have failed to meet the terms of employment and therefore the principle of ‘no-pay-no-work’ also applies.