Go on strike, stay hungry, Ikpeazu tells workers; activates no work, no pay rule
From Boniface Okoro, Umiahia
In a move to curb incessant strikes by civil and public servants over alleged non-payment of salaries, Abia State government says it will henceforth apply the rule of no work, no pay.
What it means is that workers would not be paid their entitlements for the period they are on strike, just like the federal government has insisted that it would not pay the salaries of members of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) for the period they were on strike from February to August this year.
The Secretary to Abia State Government, Barr. Chris Ezem, announced the activation of the no work, no pay policy in a statement where he described strike actions as counterproductive and retrogressive.
Abia civil service has witnessed incessant strikes under the Governor Okezie Ikpeazu administration in a bid to press home their demands for improved welfare, with Ezem noting that politicians were now using it as object of blackmail against the government.
The SSG therefore disclosed that Governor Ikpeazu has directed that the “no work, no pay policy,” should be applied in the state.
The statement reads: “Government is worried at the spate of incessant strike action by some Government establishments as the only means of pressing home their demands to Government. This action is, to say the least, counterproductive and retrogressive.
“Abia State University Teaching Hospital (ABSUTH) is a case in point. This Administration is 97 months old already. Since the inception of the present Administration, ABSUTH have been on strike for 21 months whilst Resident Doctors have been on strike for 25 months (from November 2018 till date). However, Government have continually paid ABSUTH salaries for 34 months and Resident Doctors 35 months.
“To this end, the Governor of Abia State, Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu, directs as a matter of polic,y that henceforth, the Rule of “no work; no pay” applies in Abia State.
“Whereas we promise and committed to pay all genuine workers their entitlements, we shall resist any attempt by some politicians to blackmail Government and undermine the well-being of innocent citizens by politicizing workers welfare.
“In view of the foregoing, all Government agencies, law enforcement agencies, and the general public are by this notice invited to note the above policy for compliance.”
