Yesterday, employees in Anambra voiced their dissatisfaction over the non-attendance of Governor Prof Chukwuma Soludo at the Worker’s Day rally.
The state’s Deputy Governor, Dr Onyekachukwu Ibezim, represented Soludo at the Alex Ekwueme Square.
The workers speculated that Soludo’s absence was due to his reluctance to address the extensive list of demands presented by the NLC and TUC, asserting that he is not a governor who prioritizes workers’ interests.
Initially, the workers declined to participate in the customary march past associated with the rally, arguing that Soludo’s absence was intentional. Despite repeated pleas for them to join the march past, they maintained that Soludo has consistently avoided workers’ functions since his tenure as governor began. Eventually, they reluctantly participated in the march past.
After numerous attempts to soothe the protesting workers, the Deputy Governor addressed them, promising that their concerns would be attended to shortly. He stated, “Governor Soludo, being a governor who values workers, is cognizant of your struggles. You will undoubtedly receive a response from him soon.”
Earlier, the state’s workers had submitted a comprehensive list of demands, urging Governor Chukwuma Soludo to halt the deduction of the contributory pension from their wages to maintain industrial peace in the state.
The state’s Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Chairman, Comrade Humphrey Nwafor, expressed concern over what he termed as the improper initiation and execution of the contributory pension scheme. He stated, “Since the scheme’s inception, deducted funds were seldom remitted to the Pension Fund Administrators (PFA). Prior to the current administration, the state only deducted the workers’ contribution without remitting it to the various PFAs and neglected to pay the Government’s part. Organized labour is unhappy with the continued deductions, despite repeated May Day appeals for the scheme’s suspension. We urge the Governor, who we believe not only supports workers but also strongly opposes injustice, to immediately suspend the deduction of the contributory pension from workers’ salaries to ensure industrial harmony in the state.”
