Tuesday, 7 May 2013

National Assembly workers protest over N11billion salary/allowances arrears



Legislative activities almost got truncated today, Tuesday, as hundreds of workers under the aegis of Parliamentary Association of Nigeria,PASAN, National Assembly chapter stormed the complex in protest over N11 billion salaries and allowances arrears.
Inscriptions on the placards displayed by the aggrieved workers which conveyed their anger say “Stop deduction of pension from our salary” “N10,000 Owners Occupier Housing is fraudulent”; “Pay us our allowances”, among others.
While addressing the leadership of the National Assembly, Mohammed Bawa, PASAN chairman, NASS Chapter threatened that there was no going back on the struggle, adding that the protest will continue until the National Assembly Commission submit to their demands.


He hinged his hope on assurances of the duo of Senate President and Speaker of House of Reps, David Mark and Aminu Tambuwal who personally received their petitions against the NASS Management from them.
A duplicate of a letter being circulated by some of the staff yesterday also reads:
“Recall that the Senate, at its sitting on Wednesday, May 26, 2010, approved over N11 billion for the payment of the Consolidated Legislative Salary Structure (CONLESS) in concurrence with the 100 per cent increase in salaries and allowances passed by the House of Representatives on Tuesday, May 25, 2010 for National Assembly workers, including the legislative aides and the staff of the National Assembly Service Commission”
“Recall also that according to the report of the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service, the Legislative aides, numbering 2,942, were to get N6,026,811,522 as against the then N3,444,576,893.
“The National Assembly workers, whose number stood at 3,167, were allocated N4,576,867,627 as against the then N2,660,005,145, while the National Assembly Service Commission, with a staff strength of 317, was allocated N437,019,166 as against N27,985,917 annually. Further recall that the two chambers of the National Assembly on Wednesday, July 7, 2010, adopted the conference committee’s report on CONLESS, as harmonised.
“Note that the approved CONLESS was intended to earn Grade Level 04, step 1 Officer about N41,451 while Grade Level 08 Step 1 would earn N122,884.50 monthly. This calculation was based on the 25 per cent annual Outfit and Legislative Duty Allowances, in addition to the CONLESS divided by 12 calendar months.
DailyPost gathered that following the intervention of the Senate President, David Mark and Aminu Tambuwal, Speaker of the House of Representatives, a meeting has been scheduled for this week.
Some of the workers who spoke under anonymity, frowned at the non-refundable fee of N10,000 deducted from about 3,000 staff salaries over the past three years without delivering the houses

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