… As NWC approves N5m for workers
Embattled National Working Committee (NWC) members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and aggrieved workers of the party have reached a ceasefire until Friday when a resolution of the crisis will be deliberated upon.
The truce was reached after a meeting on Monday between the leadership of the party and the workers’ association under the aegis of PDP Staff Welfare Association.
Both parties have been at daggers drawn since last week following a circular issued by the NWC, signifying its intention to cut staff strength by 50 percent and cut salaries of retained staff by the same 50 percent.
The party leadership also directed workers to refer to their respective state chairmen for revalidation of party membership.
The workers, however, protested the decision, accusing NWC members of squandering N12billion party funds within nine months.
While calling on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate the matter, they also threatened to release more evidence against the party leadership.
But following a meeting on Monday between both sides, an agreement was reached for both parties to temporarily maintain peace.
Part of the peace offering, it was gathered, was the approval by the NWC of payment of July salary and Sallah bonus to the workers.
A party source told BusinessDay that “In the new arrangement, the NWC has approved N5million for personal and administrative staff respectively; specifically, each staff will go home with N25,000 as Sallah bonus”.
However, another source who confirmed the meeting said: “A meeting between selected members of the PDP Staff Welfare and the NWC held at an undisclosed venue on Monday in Abuja but it may have failed to find permanent truce to the lingering crisis”.
He specifically noted that the order by the workers to obtain letter of revalidation from state chairmen of PDP and 50 percent salary reduction may be far from being resolved.
However, the peace deal was almost breached following the barricade of the party’s national headquarters by security men on Tuesday, allegedly on the orders of the party leadership.
The situation which led to the prevention of workers into their respective offices was greeted with staunch resistance by the angry PDP staff who queried the justification for such action.
It was gathered that the police arrived at the party secretariat as early as 6.00am and prevented workers who had reported for duty from gaining access into the building.
Some of the party’s staff that spoke to our correspondent said they arrived at 7.00am were not allowed to go into the premises by the police who told them: “It is an order from above”.
It took the intervention of the chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT), Haliru Bello for the security personnel to be withdrawn.
The Director of Administration, Bawa Gurama apparently acting on the directives from a higher authority instructed the police to allow the staff unhindered passage to their offices.
No member of the NWC was seen at the PDP secretariat to respond to allegations of corruption raised against them.
Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) had barricaded the party secretariat on Monday.
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