As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CRS), the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government Owned Companies (SSASCGOC) Maritime Branch has donated Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) worth N9.5m to workers of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).
Speaking during the distribution of the safety kits on Wednesday, in Lagos, Secretary General of the Senior Staff Union, Comrade Bodunde Akinola Oladele told journalists that the gesture was aimed to support management of NPA in curbing the spread of coronavirus in port operations.
The Union’s scribe stressed the need for SSASCGOC commitment to assist management of the authority in providing palliatives that would aid effective port operations adding that COVID19 pandemic must be contained collectively.
Bodunde affirmed that the union had distributed PPEs to workers of NPA at the eastern ports comprising Warri, Port Harcourt , Calabar and Marina Corporate head office.
He noted that safety and development of workers is a collective responsibility of SSASCGOC pointing out that health condition of personnel is paramount to the union.
According to him, management of NPA was surprised towards the union’s contribution to workers safety describing it as first of its kind in maritime unionism.
While disclosing the items distributed to workers, the Secretary stated that at the first distribution in April, the union gave out hand sanitizers, nose masks and hand gloves but explained further that the second phase of donations include: cartons of vitamin C , hand sanitizers and nose masks.
SSASCGOC Secretary General added that the total cost of the palliatives stood at N9.5million saying, the figure was into two phases.
Further breakdown on the palliative, he said “April was 4m while today is 5.5m.”
He also called on workers of the NPA to maintain government directives of social distancing , regular washing of hands and use of nose masks to further prevent the spread of coronavirus.
“We believe that management should not be taking care of the workers all by themselves and that is why we felt we should assist management in our own way to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
“Last April we did some distribution in the east and even in some Lagos area, which the Managing Director received on behalf of the NPA and the second one is what we are doing today.
” We see it as part of Corporate Social Responsibility for members because their safety is our concern”,Bodunde affirmed.
SSASCGOC Maritime Branch is an affiliate of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) which was formerly know as SSACTAC ,NPA branch.
By Roland Ekama
