As a Comrade, I wish to solidarize with the mass of workers in Ondo state who have not been able to get paid their salaries in the past five months.
Although in private practice, My family and I are not immune to the harsh economic realities this has brought as we have bread winners who are junior and senior workers in the service of the State.
When it is time therefore to number those who are suffering the backlash of inability to pay workers, be sure that I am one of you.
I am with you and fully appreciate the nightmares and It is therefore worthy to salute workers in the State for their perseverance and understanding these past months.
However, it is important to tell ourselves the truth in order to shame face the political gladiators who feel it is time to strike politically, when in essence, it is time to reason.
It is the legitimate right of workers to embark on industrial action to make known their grievance, not being paid, is an anti-climax and as such workers are in order to exercise their right to strike.
I am presently at National Industrial Court to represent the Trade Union Congress against the Federal Government on the issue of legality of strike as a tool to unsure collective interest as such, anyone trying to score political points and misinform the masses is only exercising a show of mediocrity.
The same elite who recently disdained workers for protesting fuel hike in the overall interest of Nigerians are the ones claiming to be the saviours now. How idiotic and hypocritic?
They are still in town talking about bail out that the state govt disbursed to offset three months salaries immediately it was received. Funny enough, workers who have gotten this money are no longer talking about bailout, but only those who choose to be deliberately ignorant.
What baffles intelligence is how they are suddenly more concerned about the welfare of workers they didn't care about when fuel subsidy was removed and untold hardship is now biting harder on both workers and citizens.
To the good people of Ondo state and the dynamic workers of our state, it is out of equal pain shared by all, and the passionate concern agitating the minds of all and sundry that I write to say that we should all channel our agitations in the right direction by calling on the federal government to do the needful by entrenching true federalism which will help our States to fulfill their obligations.
We should call on them to give way to true federalism to allow States exploit resources in their domains to enable them fulfill their obligations.
States should no longer be treated as babies who have to be breastfed by the mother called Federal Government. Or in the short term, review the unfair revenue sharing formula.
For instance, the allocation for the month of April totalled 281.5 billion naira. Federal Government took 101.5 b (52.68%), 36 States and FCT took 51.34 b naira (26.72%), 774 LGAs took 39.58b naira (20.6%) while roughly 15b naira was for 13% oil derivation.
This is starkly unfair. The first reality in the above is that states should no longer be made to depend on the F.G for funding, a more reason for true federalism and resource allocation.
Secondly, if the F.G is not ready for true federalism, let them allocate more resources to the States to enable them fulfill their obligations, hence the unfair sharing formula must be urgently reviewed to favour States in order to allow them fulfill their obligations.
The strike action in Ekiti, Ondo, Kwara e.t.c, is traceable to the fact that the meager allocation received monthly by states cannot sustain the states.
This position was in line with the position of Niger state governor as contained in yesterday's punch newspaper. Let us therefore understand that for Ondo state, Gov. Mimiko is not a wicked governor to deliberately owe his beloved workers who are the power house of the state, without whose strength and dedication the state cannot be run.
This is a governor who has paid 13th month salary before the economic crisis and even pays #22,000 minimum wage. Perhaps, this fact may be one of the reasons the workers have shown more understanding till now.
NLC and TUC at States and national levels, governors and other concerned stakeholders are called upon to join forces together to push for desired and timely reforms in our nation's fiscal federalism.
The following realities may soon dawn on us: First of all, Let many state governors continue to borrow to augment salary payments, it cannot be sustainable, many states will soon get to the breaking point and states' economies will crash and public debts will further soar. Bailout failed to address this problem, it cannot be a solution again.
Many states may become failed States when governors can no longer fulfill their obligations.
Crime and other social vices including insecurity will increase. Again, unrest may become the order of the day, etc.
We can't declare the above as fake prophecies and wait for them to happen. The only way we can help ourselves is to tell ourselves the truth by calling for the above reforms.
The case of Ondo State like 32 other states is a pathetic situation where governors with good hearts find themselves unable to perform their duties and execute laudable programmes aimed at bringing the dividends of democracy to the people.
For governors who are now receiving less than one-quarter of what they used to receive in the era of oil boom, will find it difficult to pay salaries when the money cannot meet just the required funds for running essential government activities.
This is a difficult situation going on in the country and we all need to brace up for these realities.
Let's all voice out this silent and peaceful economic revolution, otherwise, we are just writing the scripts for the other type of resolution.
-Kayode Ajulo a Constitutional lawyer was National Secretary Labour Party
No comments:
Post a Comment