• CLO Promises To Take- Up Case
Some embattled ex-workers of the Nigerian Ports Authourity (NPA) yesterday once again protested alleged non-payment of their pensions, even as they have succeeded in bring the Civil Liberty Organisation (CLO) into the ‘fight’ with their former employer.
Representatives of the 5,433 ex-workers who carried placards baring different messages assembled in Surulere, Lagos where they blamed a former Managing Director of the NPA, Chief Adebayo Sarumi for their predicament.
Shipping Position Daily recalls that the aggrieved ex-workers were those who were retired from NPA between 2006 and 2007 in the wake of the port concession deal which saw private terminal operators taking over some key functions of NPA.
But, standing in stout defence of the retirees, the Civil Liberty Organisation (CLO) Lagos Chapter however called on President Goodluck Jonathan to direct the Minister of Transport; Senator Idris Umar and the Managing Director of NPA; Alhaji Habib Abdullahi to place the 5,433 retirees on a monthly pension,
Chairman Lagos Chapter, of CLO; Comrade Kenny Abiola Bakare alleged the NPA has short-changed the retirees even as he told Shipping Position Daily at the venue of the protest that the issue will, henceforth be handled by the group.
He also alleged that NPA is violating the human rights of the retirees, adding that the CLO has its ways of dealing with organisations that violates of human rights.
"NPA has violated their rights, since about seven years through forceful retirement and they have not placed them on pension since then".
"And in actual facts, they still owed them a lot of money in which they have written several letters to the appropriate quarters; all to no avail and that is why we said let start from little beginning that Civil Liberty Organisation will not relax and look at them just like that because they are Nigerians and they are entitlement to their rights” stressed.
"Since their forceful retirement, their family are suffering and that is why we insist that we must make sure that their rights must not be trampled upon, so that they will have something to fall back on" ,he stated.
He threatened that should NPA fail to address the issues about the retirees, the activist group will have no option rather to seek a redress from the court.
Also speaking on behalf of the 2006/2007 retirees of the NPA, Comrade Charles Ayo Binitie , alleged that with all the meetings held with the management, NPA had never conceded placing them back on defined monthly pension scheme.
Binitie alleged that management of the agency since 2007 has always downplayed their demands by either refusal to comply or respond to letters from the Federal Ministry of Transport.
He said that those laid-off opted to receive their entitlements which were categorised into three phases following a Federal Government circular.
He said that rather than pay-off the workers according to their choice, all the affected employees were asked to complete the employment disengagement benefit option form.
``The workers affected in the 2005 disengagement were paid their full gratuity and were placed on monthly pension. The 2008 batch were also paid their full gratuity and five years statutory pension. They are not to return to defined pension payroll”, he explained.
``But when the 2006/2007 batch was laid off, the NPA management paid the retirees their entitlements, but did not include the workers in the monthly pension scheme’’, he added.
According to him, the Minister of Transport had written series of letters from January 2010 to 2012 on the subject matter requesting the Managing Director of NPA for comments and none have been replied.
But, when contacted yesterday, the General Manager, public affairs of NPA; Capt Ihenacho Ebubeogu told our correspondent that a committee which was constituted by the management of NPA was even meeting yesterday and that it is expected to submit its recommendations in two weeks.
“As I am speaking with you now, the committee is meeting on the fourth floor, their report is expected to be submitted to management in two weeks”, he confirmed.
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