Niger State Governor Abubakar Bello
The Niger House of Assembly has asked the State Government to refund deductions made from workers salaries with immediate effect.
The House passed the resolution on Tuesday following a motion by Mr Bello Ahmad (PDP- Agwarra) and seconded by Mr Salihu Edati (APC-Edati).
Ahmad said that the legislative arm was not consulted before the deductions, adding that the governor’s action was unconstitutional.
“As far as this issue of slashing workers’ salaries is concerned, none of us was consulted and we are primary stakeholders in matters that affect the people.
“If you look at the constitution and the labour act, you will see that there is no provision that empowers the state government to slash salaries, no matter the state of the economy.
“It is a different thing if there was an agreement and mutual understanding between the primary stakeholders before such deductions, but there was none and that is our worry,” he said.
Other members spoke in similar vein and called on the state government to revert to the status quo ante, as people are going through untold hardship.
Earlier in his speech, the Speaker of the House, Mr Ahmed Marafa, expressed concern over the state government’s lack of political will to recover funds looted by the past administration.
Marafa also raised concerns about the non-implementation of the resolutions of the House by the executive, which prompted the legislature to give the governor one week ultimatum to assent to two pending bills.
The House also passed seven other resolutions, including the setting up a commission of inquiry to recover all looted funds within three weeks.
The House, thereafter, unanimously passed a vote of confidence on its leadership.
Meanwhile, the organised labour in the state on Tuesday began an industrial action to protest the deductions in their salary.
Gov. Sani Bello of Niger on Monday said that the state government would pay only 90 per cent of workers basic salary.
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