•Begs workers, Nigerians
From Uche Usim, Abuja
As more Nigerians sink deeper into a multi-dimensional poverty arising from petrol subsidy removal and peppery economic policies of the Federal Government, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, has urged workers and Nigerians in general not to despair as better days are on the horizon.
He said a cocktail of potent fiscal policies designed to rescue the economy from the tempest back to calmer waters were currently being administered, including flooding the country with mass transit buses that run on compressed natural gas that is far cheaper than diesel or petrol.
He gave the assurance in Abuja on Thursday at a town hall meeting with the management and staff of the Ministry.
While seeking the cooperation and support of the staff who had begun mobilizing for a peaceful protest over poor welfare, Edun insisted synergy was the way to go as a tree does not make a forest.
“Working together, honouring one another and being fair to one another can perform wonders.”
He added, “I encourage staff to perform excellently in order to deliver in their callings not only for the Ministry but for the whole country.
The CNG buses are coming. They will reduce transportation cost”, the Minister told the workers.
Earlier, the Permanent Secretary Finance Okokon Udo, appreciated the Minister for his maiden meeting with the staff and pledged the support of the management and staff of the Ministry for his success.
He noted that the meeting was a “veritable platform for interaction” adding that its essence was to “rub minds, express feelings, tell ourselves the truth constructively and how to move forward”.
The Joint Union Chairman, Mohammed Attahiru, while officially welcoming the Minister said, the “Minister has broken the jinx by holding the interactive session adding that, the interactive meeting was what the trade union had sought for decades.
Some of the issues the union wants the Minister to pay attention to included: provision of additional staff buses, payment of promotion arrears, continuous staff training and welfare packages among others.