The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) is working closely with the Accountant General’s Office to pay the 16-month severance liabilities arising from the 2013 privatisation of the power sector as agreed with the labour unions.
The development is in furtherance of the verification exercise conducted in 2023 by the BPE and other sister agencies for the payment of the agreed severance benefits to former staff of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), including certified Next-of-Kin (NOK) of deceased ex-staff. The exercise took place in twelve designated centres over four phases across the country.
Ag. Director General of BPE, Ignatius O. Ayewoh told the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joe Ajero during a visit to seek collaboration with the Labour Union in the ongoing reform and privatisation program of the Federal Government.
It would be recalled that the federal government through the BPE in 2013 unbundled the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) into 11 units and sold them off to new investors who are currently managing them.
Ayewoh who emphasized the importance of collaboration with the labour unions to ensure the welfare of workers during and after government agency reforms, expressed gratitude to Ajero and the Union for their past support and urged them to continue partnering with the Bureau, particularly as members of the Technical Committee (TC) of the National Council on Privatisation (NCP).
Highlighting BPE’s previous successes in various sectors of the Nigerian economy such as telecoms, banking, Eleme petrochemical, and port terminal concessions, Mr. Ayewoh stated that the Bureau’s current strategy is focused on implementing Public8 Private Partnership (PPP) and concessioning in its transactions.
In response, Ajero thanked the Ag. DG for the visit and pledged the collaboration of the NLC with the Bureau in its reform activities.
