Casual workers in the Plateau Polytechnic have called on the state government to pay the arrears of their N10,000 monthly stipends owed them for 26 months.
Mr Nuhu Rafan, spoke on behalf of the workers during a peaceful protest they staged on Monday in Jos.
According to him, some of the workers have put in over 22 years in the service of the polytechnic without permanent employment.
He accused the state government and management of the Plateau Polytechnic of tribalism and nepotism, lamenting that none of the casual staff was given substantive appointment in the recent recruitment of new workers in the school.
”Majority of us have put in 22 years of serving in the Polytechnic as casual workers and the management of the institution had promised us that anytime there will be recruitment we will be considered first before any outsider.
”But just recently, between 700 to 800 workers were employed and none of us was given the opportunity as promised. Those in authority only spread the employment among family members, friends and cronies.
”Our monthly stipend is usually N10,000 per worker, and as we speak we are being owed this meagre sum for 26 months.
”So, we are appealing to Gov. Simon Lalong to ensure that the management of the Polytechnic pays us our entitlements before he exits office on May 29,” he said.
Rafan also disclosed that the management of the institution also served them with a latter of temporary disengagement in February, describing the decision as ‘cruel’.
”Though we are casual workers, but we remain the heartbeat of this institution because we do over 70 per cent of the work.
”The institution used us to secure accreditation for most of its academic programmes, yet they are treating us badly.
”Most of us are widows, some have orphans under their care; our children can’t go to school because we lack the means to do so.
”So, this protest is not to revolt but a peaceful way to remind government of our plights and to let them know that before they disengage us, they should first pay us our arrears first,” he said.
But Mr Mike Dang, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Polytechnic, said all the issues raised by the workers were false.
He, however, promised to furnish the media with the correct details of the issues in due course.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the workers all wore black clothes and carried placards with different inscriptions.
