The President of the
Nigeria Labour Congress ( NLC ), Mr Ayuba Wabba, has urged workers to get their
Permanent Voter Cards ( PVCs ) to vote out state governors owing salaries and
allowances.

Wabba decried the ordeal of workers at the hands of state governments in
Nigeria, insisting that the Nigerian government treat workers like slaves.

“It is time the workers used their numbers to push back; I encourage members
to get their PVCs to vote out every defaulting state governor.

“State governments owing salaries were given bailouts and different Federal
Government interventions, including the Paris club funds meant to offset their
debts to state workers.

“While some have met their responsibilities and paid off, chronic debtors
like Benue and Kogi states remain adamant in fulfilling their responsibilities
and clearing their debts.

“The challenge is not lack of resources but sheer unwillingness and
misplaced priorities. ‘’

Wabba said that the reality of the matter was that the problem had never
been about resources, saying “In most of those states, their priority is not to
pay salaries but white elephant projects.’’

He said that before this current administration came in, Plateau owed seven
months salaries but through ingenuity, the governor utilised all the money
given to him to settle everybody.

He said that many states had utilised their money, but some states, about
twelve of them, including Benue and Kogi had failed.

He, however, said that the governors should be held accountable because
democracy was about the people.

He said that if as governors, they were not able to address the fundamental
constitutional issue of security and welfare of the people then the people also
must be able to hold them accountable.

“Workers and pensioners must unite to use their PVC to chase these type of
people out of government; if workers, in unity, demand it and also use their
power of franchise to vote them out of office,’’ he said.

Also speaking, the co-convener, Say No Campaign, Mr Ezenwa Nwagwu,
encouraged citizens to join unions or associations and actively participate in
ensuring that their collective interests were championed.

Nwagwu said that where members noticed that leadership had been compromised
or failed to promote their interest, there should be no hesitation in voting
such leaders out.

He said that the demand for accountability should begin at the
 communities level, adding that only when citizens were able to hold their
leaders accountable, would they have the courage to hold government
accountable.

He advised Nigerians not to be divided along ethnic or religious sentiments
in the demand for accountability because citizens needed to develop the culture
of giving ultimatums to government and demand urgent response to their plights.

He condemned state governors owing workers and insisted that they were
inflicting the worst kind of terror on their people by attacking their means of
survival.

Source: NAN