NIGERIA
Public Servants working at Nigeria’s Federal Secretariat have protested against poor conditions, lack of training and arrears in promotion pay.
Workers at the Secretariat, which also contains the offices of the high profile Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Winnifred Oyo-Ita (pictured) also complained that only one of the 16 elevators in the complex was working.
One worker, speaking on condition of anonymity, said their promised Sallah holiday bonus of N50,000 ($A190), had been slashed to N15,000 ($A57) without any reason given.
He said this was despite the fact that the Government still owed them the bonus from the last Sallah holiday, which marks the end of the Muslim religious observance of Ramadan.
“They have been promising, but we buy working materials with our own money to ensure the job is done,” the worker claimed.
“We use our money to photocopy documents at business centres, and the toilets are appalling, they need maintenance.”
Mrs Oyo-Ita was not in the office when the protest occurred.
In a separate development, the Nigerian Government has announced plans to conduct training in agricultural businesses for intending retirees from the Public Service.
Information Officer at the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Akinwumi Olufunke said the training was part of a pre-retirement program for Federal Civil Servants.
“Participants will be trained on various agricultural businesses to provide an alternative stream of income for intending retirees as they transit from active service,’’ Mrs Olunfunke said.
Abuja, 17 August, 2018
