Governor Samuel Ortom: Govt seizes salaries of Obi LG workers

Benue State Government says Obi Local Government workers have  not been paid 14 months salaries because they chased away the Staff Verification Committee that was sent to the secretariat.

Mr Emmanuel Ikpe, Permanent Secretary of Benue Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs gave this explanation in response to protest by the workers on Tuesday.

“We are aware of the situation. The workers are responsible for their travails. The staff refused to submit themselves for verification. They chased the verification committee out of the local government secretariat.’’

He said the bureau also uncovered serious employment racketeering in the council, adding that an individual employed many workers without following due process.

The scribe said that the bureau was investigating the situation and that government would surely sanction those found culpable.

No fewer than 800 staff members of Obi Local Government Council Area of Benue State on Tuesday protested against the non-payment of their 14 months salaries.

They also called on the Federal Government to probe the disbursement of the N28 billion bailout funds granted to the state. The workers marched to the headquarters of the council to register their grievances.

Mr Dominic Abah, leader of the protesters, accused the State Government of being insensitive to their plight.

Abah said government had no basis to stop paying their salaries without due process since they had been in service for over six years.

“But we know that some of our colleagues in the state were paid while we in Obi have been left out. For the past 14 months, the government has refused to pay Obi local government staff their salaries for reasons best known to it.”