Workers at the Etsako West Local Government Area in Edo State on Thursday shut down operations at the council secretariat as they protested the non-payment of their salary arrears. The workers arrived early, locked the main gate, and stopped all movement in and out of the premises, leaving the council chairman, Valentine Okwillagwe, unable to leave during the demonstration.
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The protest started after the workers insisted that the council must clear the arrears owed to them. They moved to the entrance of the building and continued demanding that the outstanding payments be made. The workers said the arrears had been pending for years and that they had reached a point where they wanted the council to address the issue.
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Speaking by phone, Chairman Okwillagwe said the arrears dated back to past administrations and not his own. He said the current state government, led by Governor Monday Okpebholo, had been consistent with salary payments. He added that salaries at the council were paid early each month and that the arrears from 2020 had already been cleared. He explained that some of the outstanding arrears being demanded were from 2011, 2012 and 2017.
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Okwillagwe said that when he assumed office, he met salary issues from 2014, 2017 and 2020, and deductions from 2019. He questioned why workers who served under different chairmen did not protest during previous administrations but were doing so now. Attempts to reach the NULGE chairman, Edeipo Ahmed, were not successful, as his phone was switched off.
One of the workers, who did not want to be named, said the protest had nothing to do with politics. He maintained that workers have the right to ask for their arrears at any time, even if the debts were not caused by the present leadership. He said the money owed could make a real difference in the lives of workers who have waited for years.
The protest continued at the council gate as the workers insisted that the arrears must be paid.
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