By Victor AHIUMA-YOUNG and Demola AKINYEMI
IN a desperate moves to avert Monday planned national strike by workers of Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN, the Federal government has released the sum of N5 billion for the immediate payment of monetisation  benefits to the PHCN workers.

This came as facts emerged that the government would need a whopping N40 billion to address the grievances of the aggrieved workers.

Meanwhile, the umbrella body for senior staff associations in Nigeria, the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, yesterday threw its weight behind the planned strike be co-ordinated by National Union of Electric Employers, NUEE, and its Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies, SSAEAC, counterpart, saying the government had penchant for reneging on agreements.

The workers are protesting non payment of monetization of their fringe benefits including arrears, non payment of balance of 150 per cent salary increase and regularization of the employment of over 10,000 casual/contract workers in PHCN.

The grievances were contained in the agreement jointly signed by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of labour and Productivity Ambassador Chike Anigbo, Permanent Secretary Ministry of power Alh I.B Sali and President of Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies, SSAEAC, Comrade Engineer B.Opara, and President National Union of Electricity Employees, NUEE, Comrade Monsur, and their secretaries respectively on the 14 May 2010.

The Minister of State for Power, Arc. Nuhu Somo Wya, who announced the release of the N5billion for the payment of the workers’ monetisation benefits, disclosed however that, Government had  appointed Consultants to carry out the verification of monetization claims forwarded by Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).
The Minister in a statement through his Special Assistant on Print Media, Mr. Yakubu Lawal, said adequate arrangements were made in the Supplementary Budget passed by the National Assembly this week to address the Workers demands.

According to the statement: “ This action by the Government is an indication of its concern for the Welfare of the Workers, particularly now that Power is treated as number one priority of the Federal Government.

The Minister appealed to the leadership of the Electricity workers to shelf the planned Strike for next week Monday in order to create conducive atmosphere for the payment to be made to their members. He enjoined the Union Executives to embrace dialogue in this process as Government has done everything possible to ensure that the workers get their entitlements.

This Administration has a listening ear and is therefore engaging the leadership of the Unions with a view to resolve all outstanding issues amicably in the interest of the Workers and Nigerians in general.”

FG needs N40bn to address grievances
Facts emerged yesterday that the Federal government required not less than N40billion to address the grievances of the workers and avert the planned  nationwide industrial action scheduled to begin midnight Sunday.

At a briefing in Ilorin, Kwara state yesterday, the Assistant General Secretary of Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies (Generation and Transmission) Alhaji Ibrahim Umar, explained that by estimation,  the federal government would need to pay N40 billion to meet their obligations to prevent the strike.

He lamented  that in spite of the patriotic manner the PHCN workers had been rendering services to Nigerians nationwide with utmost diligence, they had been neglected  among other parastatals of the federal government to wallow in abject poverty to the shame of the families and their relations.

Alh Umar urged the stakeholders not to blame the aggrieved staff of the PHCN over the planned industrial action, but to call the government to order to fulfill the agreement they freely entered into with the PHCN workers and expressed shock that four weeks after the agreement was reached, nothing had changed.

He insisted that the PHCN workers had no option other than to proceed on the planned nationwide strike.
According to him,” we can no longer tolerate the antics of  impoverishing our members. The situation has degenerated to a level where members have started calling us names because of our empty promises. Enough is enough..”

TUC backs strike

Meanwhile, Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, yesterday threw its weight behind the planned strike and called on Nigerians to hold the government responsible for the consequences of the planned strike.
President-General of TUC, Comrade Peter Esele, told Saturday Vanguard that the government had developed a penchant for reneging on agreement freely entered into and that if it would take the planned strike to make government do the right, so be it .

According to him: “ We are strongly behind the PHCN workers on this. In fact, few hours ago, I was briefed on the issue. I can tell you that it appears that government is not taking them serious. But I can tell you that the workers are determined and we are behind them.

We are opposed to a situation where government will enter into an agreement and will not honour it. Or a situation where government wait till the last minuets before meeting with leaders of the workers.”