C'River Basin Staff Lament Non Payment of Promotion Arrears As Union Leaders Stop Workers From Protesting

BASSEY BASSEY

Cross River Basin Development Authority (CRBDA) have lamented the non-payment of their three years promotion arrears and illegal deductions from their monthly salaries.

In a congress held in the conference centre of Authority at 8 Miles, Calàbar, the workers were restrained by their union executives from embarking on a protest by blockading the entrance to the Authority's premises to demand for the payment of 2017, 2018 and 2020 promotion arrears and an end to illegal deductions from their salaries as union dues.

At the congress, which was chaired by Comrade Joseph Etim, the branch Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Agriculture and Allied Employees (NUAAE), the workers highlighted their plight and the hardship they are going through owing to the non payment of their outstanding arrears and demanded for the immediate release of the money and a stop to the double deductions from their salaries for union dues payment. 

"Outstanding promotion arrears for 2017, 2018 and 2020 have since been paid to staff of other Basin Authorities across the country in full yet in our case only 50% is what we got and several appeals to the management of Cross River Basin Authority to offset our payment has fallen on deaf ears" the staff lamented.

Comrade Etim said a Committee was set up by the management of CRBDA some months back to look into the issue but the report the workers got was that payment is done by IPPIS in Abuja but when a delegation was sent to Abuja by the workers, they were informed in IPPIS office that they have no hand in it but the responsibility of the management of their Authority to pay them.

The staff called on the Minister of Water Resources to intervene by directing the CRBDA management to release their promotion arrears to them as done by management of other Basin Authorities across the country.

"We appeal to the Minister of Water Resources to save us from this situation by directing the management.of CRBDA to release the money to us which will be very useful in addressing some needs these trying times" Etim stated.

The staff also complained about what they call "illegal deductions" from their salaries as dues for two different unions.

"We belong to Nigeria Union of Agriculture and Allied Employees only but our salaries are being deducted to pay dues for Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria which we do not belong.

The salary of cleaners to senior staff of the Authority are deducted monthly making it double payment for dues which is illegal".

The workers said they are being forcefully made to be members of Association of Senior Civil Servants without their consent and deductions made from their monthly salaries as dues which is illegal.

"We have met several times with the Managing Director of the CRBDA , Engineer Bassey Nkposong to stop the deductions from our salaries which is prepared here by the Deputy Director Finance and Administration but this has not yielded results.

Comrade Etim said this is not the case in other Basin Authorities and appealed to the Minister of Water Resources to save the workers in CRBDA from their plight.

The distraught workers also appealed to the Minister to call on the management to stop the illegal sale of land within the CRBDA premises to land developers for building and other construction activities.

"The land within CRBDA belongs to the federal government and nobody has the right to sell or lease any portion of it for building and other activities.

As we speak with you, a private land developer hired by the CRBDA in conjunction with the Cross River State Ministry of Lands has been given rights to sell the land to individuals to build houses".

The workers said when they tried to stop the private land developer from building houses on the land, some workers including the branch Chairman of NUAAE were arrested by the police and detained for several days.

"They warned us not to obstruct their activities because they signed a memorandum of understanding with the management. The Minister should please intervene here too".

Calls were made to Lower Basin River Development Authority, Anambra/ Imo River Basin Authority and Lower Niger Basin Development Authority who confirmed that deductions are made for only NUAAE and their outstanding promotion arrears have been cleared.

Engineer Bassey Nkposong was not in office during the congress and messages and calls to his phone number were not answered and that of Mr Jackson John the Public Relations Officer of the Authority were not responded to too.