Workers Barricade PHCN HQ. In Abuja

Members of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), on Monday locked all the major gates leading to the PHCN headquarters, Abuja, to protest non-payment of their entitlements.

The members insisted that the gates would remain shut, until the Federal Government paid workers all their entitlements.

Mr. Temple Iworima, Secretary of NUEE, who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said the union took the action because the Federal Government reneged on its promise to fulfill all labour issues before privatising the PHCN.

Iworima, who is coordinating the protest in the FCT, Niger, Nasarawa and Kogi states, noted that the Minister of Power, Prof. Barth Nnaji, recently directed the management to issue transfer letters to all the staff, without discussing this with the union.

He said that the action was against the International Labour Organisation Convention.

“But the staff have not seen any letter, hence the union directed all PHCN staff nationwide to barricade their offices.”

Iworima also said that the union had given the government till February 8 to fulfill its promises or face industial action.

In his reaction, Mr. Greyne Anosike, Head, Media/ Public Relations of the Ministry of Power, said that the minister complied with “provisions of the 2005 Act, which unbounded PHCN.”

He stressed that PHCN had been privatised, with 18 successor companies, adding that arrangements were being made to transfer workers at the PHCN Headquarters to any of the companies.

According to him, when these companies start working, there will be nothing like PHCN.

Anosike explained that it was in compliance with the Electricity Power Sector Reform Act of 2005 and Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) of January 1, this year, that government stopped remitting PHCN’s workers’ salaries.