NULGE Boss Groans About Suffering Of Nigeria Workers, Calls For Welfare Packages

NULGE Boss Groans About Suffering Of The Nigeria Workers, Calls For Welfare Packages

...Insists LGA Should Be Grant Financial Autonomy 

Iduozee Efe Paul, Benin

The National President of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Comrade Ambali Akeem Olatunji, has lamented the suffering and hardship of Nigeria workers and all Nigerians as a result of the removal of fuel subsidy and called for a good welfare packages for its workers.

Comrade Akeem Olatunji also urged the federal and state governments to grant financial autonomy for local government system in Nigeria and thanked the Edo state government led by governor Godwin Obaseki for creating an enabling environments for Edo state workers to strives.

The national President of NULGE made the called at the 2nd NULGE National Youth Conference, 2023, with the theme:" Unleashing Youth Potentials for Improve Productivity and Service Delivery at Sub National Level in Nigeria Local Government, Benin city, Edo state.

He said " Nigerians are passing through harrowing experience, we must continue to be prayerful and continue to manage our health because now high BP is very common. People are been frustrated, we should not loss hope.

 "We should continue to be loyal to the government of the day and continue to work and improve the welfare of our members. That is why we have brought them here to expose their skills so that at the end of the day they would well position to negotiate and bargin for a better packages welfare for our members."

Condemning the hardship that the Nigeria workers are passing through, Comrade Ambali Akeem said," the governments must be serious and stop playing politics with workers lives. The retinue of aides at the federal level is unnecessary.

" You cannot say Nigerians should adjust their standard of living while you leave extravagant life.  That is condemnable to labour, we have said that the appointment of  Ministers at most should not be more than 26 maximum. And the retinue of them been appointed are unnecessary.

" We have technocrats in the system who can also pilot the scheme very well. Number two, government must address the issue of wage to  workers immediately. Wage of workers should be increase to between 30% to 35% to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal.

" Governments most instantly intervene by bringing  out a good amount of money to construct conversion centres in all the state of the Federation, so that people would be able to migrate from PMS regime to CNG. What they are doing now by importing buses and cars cannot solve the problems.

" What we need now is to ensure we have two or three conversion centres in every state of the Federation that would be able to convert PMS cars to CNG cars, which are very economical and affordable to Nigerians. The litre of CNG is affordable to Nigeria people.

" Buying buses to reduce the suffering, how many buses can they buy? What of individuals that have their own cars, how do they go all about with their vehicles? What is happening to workers? How many of them can go with buses? So we believed that wage review is the best way to leave.

" We believed that there be construction of conversion centres. If governments are serious to construct a conversion centres by our own estimation is about 200 million. If we invest 600 million per state × 37 states, we would have a enough conversion centres where people will take their vehicles to for conversion.

" And if we want to make it more affordable and conveinent for Nigeria people, you can allow banks to grant soft loans to the workers that are vulernable so that they will be able to take their vehicles there which cost about 320,000.00 to 350,000.00, and do the conversion to pay for a period of time so that everybody will be more comfortable.

" And the way to go is to pay minimum 50 percent of gratutity across board to all workers wether in private or public sectors so that it would cushon the effects of fuel subsidy. 

"More, more important thing is that if governments are serious is to consider  granting financial autonomy to local governments, so that we would be able to active the department for vocational skills acquistion for training in the local governments. Giving people money is not the best way, tech them and give them the right skills and empower them.

" For local government areas, we believed that there is an Infrastructural gaps in the local governments. We don't need money to be given to local governments. Governments can also provide some equipments like tractors, graders and heavy mechines. 

"You don't need to give them money so that they will make it available to all rural communities by opening the rural roads, till the soils and provide food security for our people, and that is the best way to go. Again, Nigeria must get it right. If we don't fix the local government, we can never fix Nigeria," he stressed.

Edo state governor, Godwin Obaseki, represented by the Chairman Local Government Service Commission, Edo state , Chief Tom Uloko, thanked the state government for be able impact the local government in the State.

Tom Uloko stressed that their aims in the local government is to be to generate their revenues. He said this would enable speedy human resources and development 

He added that local governments as state government have the manpower to carry any specific projects that would improve their local areas and said he believed that a time is coming when local governments will be granted their autonomy.

In his address of welcome, the NUGLE National Young Workers' Representatives/National Youth Wing President, Comrade Rufus Adeyemi Babalola, said government has a statutory duty of empowering its youth, as well as the Union and this is one of the cogent reasons  why NUGLE will not relent its effort to partner with various government agencies to undertake youth empowerment programme 

Comrade Babalola said," the leaders have made the youth to believe that Nigeria is nothing as a result of massive looting of common wealth in all the arms and tiers of government. Youth are divided along the ethnic and religion lines. I  opined that the multi cultural and multi religious diversity is our strength which the youth have not entrenched."

In his talks, Edo State NUGLE President, 

Comrade Adorolo Lazarus, said NUGLE as a body had discovered that there are so many ills in the society, that this ills and problems are related to our youths.

" The conference is holding as a Union to training and equip members about the new trends in the society. NUGLE is a body had discovered that there are so many ills in the society. This ills and problems are related to our youths. And if we must get it right is to focus on the youths. It is the youths that made up the local governments.

" Everybody reside in the local government areas, and if we must address such issues to focus on local governments and youth development. If we must get it right the federal and state governments must encourage the local government levels to grow.

" They must play a good partnership roles in developing the local governments and grassroot advancement, and that is the only way we can move forward. Today, a lot of issues are happening. Kidnapping, bad roads, unemployment, armed robbering, and many other social vices.

" The government went further again to removed fuel subsidy. People cannot longer move, yet we have not see the governments to address the issue surrounding the removal of fuel subsidy. In Nigeria today, if assume we have a railway train system running from Abuja to Rivers State to Edo, Delta and to many other states in Nigeria people will not be groaning about the cost of transportation. 

"People can easily move, the destruction of our roads will not be there. Therefore we now want government to be proactive. Is not just a question of saying we are in government, without having an impact on the people. It is the people that make up the government to function that is our take.

" For the conference of today is a way to advance our youths into vocational skills. Even when they retire they can have something to hold onto. Is two day tranning engagement organized for our people on skills acquisition," Comrade Lazarus buttressed.