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enugu State workers, under the aegis of Organised Labour, on Tuesday, paid a thank-you-visit to Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi for his administration’s consistency in addressing their issues in spite of various challenges confronting the nation.
The organised labour, comprising the state leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) and Joint Public Service Negotiating Council (JNC), described Ugwuanyi as a God-fearing, peaceful and labour-friendly leader, who has lived up to expectations in fulfilling his promises to workers since his assumption of office in 2015.
They said Ugwuanyi made a lot of promises to the workers and fulfilled them expeditiously despite “the state’s dwindling resources occasioned by the nation’s economic recession, which your administration has experienced twice in five years, the COVID-19 pandemic and #EndSARS protests.”
NLC Chairman, Virginus Nwobodo, said the governor’s steadfastness and commitment to the welfare of the workers have brought pride to the state, nationally, to the extent that “any time we go for our national meetings, when other labour leaders will be crying that this one has not been done, we will be giving them information about new things that are happening in Enugu; and they have always applauded you (Ugwuanyi), even without you being in our national meetings.”
On the ongoing construction of befitting secretariat complexes, simultaneously, for the NLC and TUC in the state, Nwobodo, who disclosed the major aim of their visit was to thank the governor specially for the landmark feats, said the former secretariat given to NLC around 1998 by then military administration “was an eyesore, but, today, you (Ugwuanyi) have come to wipe our tears.”
Also, TUC Chairman, Benneth Asogwa, said they are amazed the governor commenced the landmark projects, as he earlier promised, when they least expected them because of the nation’s challenges.
Asogwa assured the governor that “even though you belong to the Peoples Democratic Party, we are strongest party you have because the workers of Enugu State will always be with you even when you leave office as a governor.”
He said the endorsement was because of the way you (Ugwuanyi) have loved and cared for the workers of Enugu State since the time you assumed office.
“Your excellency has always listened to us; in fact the minimum wage issue has always been a nightmare to us until you assumed office.
“We were afraid that the jaw-jaw relationship between the state government and labour in Enugu might get soiled over the recent new minimum wage but you never allowed it to happen that way. In short, you were the one initiating the processes and making sure it took off without any stress.
“We don’t want to continue recounting all you have done to ensure the workers are taken care of, but we cannot forget in a hurry that we are one of the states in Nigeria that have never cried at any point in time over non-payment of salaries. Even when recession was biting deep, you continued paying us, you never owe anybody.
“It is an exemplary leadership that has not been equaled by anybody else, even when we know we are not among the list of states that receive large allocations from the Federal Government. We thank you for that.”
