Privatisation: PHCN wWorkers Protest In Delta

 
PEEVED by the Federal Government’s resolve to privatise the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN, the workers, yesterday, staged a protest against the move to go ahead with the handing over of the company’s distribution and generation without settling lingering labour issues.
Describing the Federal Government’s move as insensitive and unlawful, the placard-carrying electricity workers said the move was against the President’s mantra of due process.
The protest, which was embarked upon by members of the company’s two unions, Nigeria Unoin of Electricity Employees, NUEE and the Senior Staff Association, SSA, insisted that they were not against the privatisation process but were only agitating for what was rightfully theirs as agreed with the two in-house unions.
Comrade Penson Okorodudu, who spoke to newsmen on behalf of the protesting workers at Ughelli, said:  “Our fears are now being confirmed. The privatisation is not genuine and what is happening is that the Federal Government is trying to hand over PHCN companies to their friends and loyalists without settling the workers.”
Flanked by Comrade Biakolo Christopher, NUEE Chairman, Ughelli Power Plc; Mrs. Juliana Okpoko, SSA Chairman, Ughelli Power Plc; Comrade Joseph Nwanze, SSA Chairman, TCN Ughelli; Comrade Kazim Yusuf, Chairman, NUEE, TCN Ughelli and Comrade Benson Akpewa, Charmian, NUEE, Ughelli Business District, Okorodudu said: “As I speak to you, some of us have put in 30 years, 5 years and some others are just starting and the Federal Government is saying they want to lay us off without our total benefits.
“They are claiming they have completed payments but let me tell you, what they did was sample payment.
“In Benin Zone, for instance, with over 2,500 staff, less than 500 staff have been paid and even those paid were not paid their full benefits; they were only paid their severance packages and that is not what was agreed upon.
“Our colleagues in transmission, none of them have been paid and government is saying they are laying us off and handing over.
”We agreed on the payments of gratuity, pension, severance benefits of 10%, equity shares to all PHCN staff and the regularisation of all PHCN contract staff. All the Federal Government has done is pay severance benefits to less than 20% of the entire PHCN staff.
“Even those of our colleagues who retired since 2011 have not been paid their gratuity and pension as we are speaking and they say they are handing over.”