The Kwara State Chapter of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) has applauded Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for his continuous efforts at improving the welfare of workers in the state.
The newly inaugurated State Council Chairman of the NLC, Comrade Murtala Olayinka who gave the commendation during a courtesy visit to the Governor described him as a progressive leader who truly cares for the people of the state, including workers.
According to him, the Governor’s programmes and projects are visible to all even as he continues to prioritise the welfare of workers.
Comrade Olayinka, therefore, called for better synergy between the government and the Labour unions.
“As we love our state, Kwara, we are so much in love with our governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for being so caring for our community. We are monitoring the trend of events in the state and the achievements recorded so far as quite visible and laudable. Recently, I was told that the promotion of local government workers for the year 2022 is currently being released. Kudos to your administration.
“No worker will feel happy when they are stagnant on a level for years without promotion. So, workers of Kwara State since the beginning of your administration are happy and encouraged. It is our desire and belief that you should continue in this rightful direction. We pray Allah will continue to guide and protect you.”
He also commended the Governor for his support for the recently concluded conference of the NLC in Ilorin.
Governor AbdulRazaq, for his part, dismissed the claim that he would sack workers in his second term adding that he looked forward to working harmoniously with the labour unions and insisted that workers’ salaries and improved welfare would remain a top priority for his administration.
“We have heard the opposition saying that we are going to sack workers. They are saying this because there’s nothing for them to campaign with again. They didn’t know it is much more expensive to sack workers than to maintain them. They think if you remove 50 workers from the ministry of works, then you are not paying salaries for 50 persons. It doesn’t work that way. That is simplistic thinking. Yes, in the Ministry of Works you may have a gap of 50. But you have to go to the Ministry of Finance because you have to pay pensions and gratuities for the same 50 people, which are a lot more than sacking anyone. This is besides the social implications.
“If you sack a worker, you are only saving possibly 30%, but you are again loading pension and gratuities. It is cheaper for us to maintain civil servants than sacking them. So, that is not in our agenda. It does not benefit us or the society as every family has a civil servant at least. We are not going to sack workers. We are determined to improve your welfare instead.
“We will continue to work with you. Our doors are always open. We have a policy to hire any doctor available because doctors are leaving this country every day or leaving state hospitals to federal health facilities. So, we need more hands.”
PIAK
