Imo Gov., Rochas set to cut Workers' salaries

 

An indication emerged at the weekend that the Imo State government has concluded plans to slice workers’ salaries by 23 per cent to enable government shoulder the rising wage bill in the state’s civil service.

Governor Rochas Okorocha last week at a meeting with the state’s labour unions on the threat by workers to embark on a seven-day warning strike over non-payment of their salaries, expressed concern at the rate pensions of Imo State and staff salaries was rising, pointing out that there was corruption in the system and government has resolved to fight it to a standstill.

National Mirror gathered that the state government plans to reduce workers’ wage bill by 23 per cent if some punitive measures such as downsizing was not to be taken as alternative.

A source close to Government House disclosed that it was only corruption that the state governor intends to fight, adding that the direction it would take was not yet clear. “The wage bill as the governor said was astronomically high and something needs to be done to arrest the ugly situation. It is not witch-hunting anybody or group of people.”

However, the workers, particularly the local government staff, have said they would resist any attempt by the state government to cut their salaries. Some of the staff who do not want their names mentioned, said that with the bailout from the Federal Government and monthly allocation from the Federation Account, the state government has no excuse not to pay workers’ salaries.

Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the state has concluded arrangements to reduce its workers’ salaries by 50 per cent.

According to a source at the party’s secretariat, along Okigwe Road, Owerri, “if you are earning for instance N10,000, the executive council. EXCO, plans to cut it to N5,000.”

It was gathered that the EXCO is complaining that the party has no money to pay its workers’ salaries, and, as such, it wants to maintain a manageable size workforce.

But some of the workers interviewed disclosed unanimously that the EXCO spent the party’s fund recklessly.

“Today, they want the workers to carry the burden of their recklessness,” one of them said