The Gombe State chapter of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) has criticised what it described as the state government’s failure to address the welfare concerns of workers in state-owned tertiary institutions.
In a statement issued on Thursday by its Publicity Secretary, Abdulkadir Ahmad Dukku, the party expressed concern that despite receiving a 14-day ultimatum from the Joint Union of Gombe State Tertiary Institutions (JOUGTIN), the government failed to act before the deadline expired.
“The PDP holds the Gombe State Government responsible for allowing the situation to escalate, disrupting students’ education and worsening the hardship faced by workers, parents and families,” part of the statement read.
The party alleged that the administration of Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya had disregarded the welfare of lecturers, other employees and students, while workers remained denied of their lawful entitlements.
“Unfortunately, this is the government that gave hundreds of millions of naira to Hausa Singers from another state, in addition to many other properties.
“It could be recalled that the PDP at that time condemned that wasteful gesture of the tax payers’ money and till date the government did not come out to defend its action,” the publicity secretary said.
According to the PDP, the funds given to Hausa Praise Singers could have addressed a substantial part of the legitimate demands presented by JOUGTIN.
The party maintained that beyond failing to establish any Higher Institution of learning in the state, Governor Yahaya’s administration is “determined to kill the existing ones established by his predecessors.”
The publicity secretary urged the state government to immediately engage JOUGTIN, provide a credible timetable for addressing all verified entitlements, begin settling outstanding benefits and ensure the warning strike does not become indefinite.
Dukku said the PDP remains firmly behind the affected workers, assuring that if elected, it would settle all legitimate outstanding entitlements and implement transparent and sustainable policies aimed at safeguarding workers’ welfare.
According to media reports, JOUGTIN commenced a 14-day warning strike on Wednesday over what it described as the persistent failure of the Gombe State Government to implement and pay outstanding staff welfare entitlements.
The union said the action became necessary following the expiration of a 14-day ultimatum, which required the government to take concrete steps towards resolving welfare concerns affecting employees of public tertiary institutions across the state.
Among the demands are arrears resulting from the 2019 N30,000 minimum wage, 25 and 35 per cent wage awards, failure to implement the N70,000 minimum wage and unpaid Earned Academic Allowances (EAA).
The institutions affected include the College of Education (COE), Billiri; Gombe State Polytechnic, Bajoga; College of Health Science and Technology, Kaltungo; and the College of Education and Legal Studies, Nafada.
