GHOST WORKERS: Organised Labour Accuses Kogi HoS Of Blackmailing Civil Servants

Organised Labour in Kogi State on Friday,  accused Head of Service, HoS, Deborah Ogunmola of blackmailing civil servants over  allegation of 300 ghost workers allegedly planted by senior civil servants in the state.

The Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Onuh Edoka and his Trade Union Congress counterpart, Comrade Ranti Ojo described the allegation as unfortunate given the fact that the state government had conducted staff verification exercise that lasted for over three years.

Recall that  Ogunmola had alleged that over 300 uncleared staff of Kogi State civil service made their way back to the payroll of the state civil service through the help of top civil servants.

The labour in a statement issued on Friday, noted that aside the normal verification exercise that lasted three years, the government also organised pay parade for all workers and had their biometric data captured.

The statement therefore challenged the Head of Service to publish the names of the ghost workers, their MDAs and the senior civil servants involved in the criminal activities.

The labour leaders said the government’s statements since after the screening indicated that the payment system has been made watertight and only the governor could order the inclusion of any names in the payroll and wondered how senior civil servants could gain access to the payroll again

They said until the identities of those involved are revealed, the organised labour would view the action of the Head of Service as a deliberate attempt to rubbish what the State government has achieved from the screening exercise and thereby throw the entire workforce into another round of screening exercise.

The organised labour also accused the Head of Service of finding avenues of perpetuating herself in office having reached her retirement age in service since two years ago.

The statement advised the state government not to adhere to any form of advice that could set it against workers, noting that the Head of Service outburst was a coup against workers aimed at denying them their minimum wage.