NIPOST Staff protest in Abuja, demand stoppage of Reforms

Staff of the Nigerian Postal Service, NIPOST, have staged a peaceful protest over alleged plan by the authorities to sell the organisation.

They demand the immeidate suspension of the government reform slated to commence by the end of this month.

In 2021, the Federal government, through the Minister of Communications, announced plans to reform NIPOST.

The reform will focus on unbundling the organisation and putting its over 2300 decapitated and under utilised assets to use, create employment and generate revenue.

It also hopes to start a microfinance bank through which employment and revenue can be generated

This protest is their first major step towards registering their disagreement with government over the planned reform.

They insist the planned reform is shrouded in secrecy as they were not carried along.

The workers sight the fate of NITEL, which has since gone underground after similar reforms.

They threaten industrial unrest in the sector should government ignore their grievances

They want immediate suspension of the reform for clearer and broader insights.

The newly appointed Post Master General of the Federation, Sunday Adepoju, was on hand to receive a copy of the workers’ table of demands and promised to deliver it accordingly.

FLIGHTS RESUME AFTER WORKERS STRIKE

Air passengers both local and international can now heave a sigh of relief as normalcy is gradually returning to airports across the country as seamless passenger facilitation has commenced.

This is coming on the heels of the suspension of strike by aviation unions over the review of salaries of its members in the Nigeria Aviation Handling Company, NAHCO.

The strike was called off after three hours meeting between the unions, the National Union of Air Transport Employees, NUATE, the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, ATSSSAN, and the management of the company.

Flight operations were grounded on Monday morning following the industrial action embarked on by the staff of NAHCO over failure to review their current salaries since June 2022.

Flight disruption due to the strike left scores of passengers both local and foreign stranded at the Lagos airports which spilled over to airports across the country.

Speaking on the strike, Secretaries General of the Unions in NAHCO, the National Union of Air Transport Employees, NUATE and Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, ATSSSAN, Comrades Ocheme Aba and Frances Akinjole noted that its members embarked on the strike because the NAHCO management handled their seven-day ultimatum with kid gloves.

According to them, the management also continued to play on their intelligence through rescheduling of purposeless meetings.

In an agreement reached at the end of the meeting, all staff have been directed to resume work immediately, negotiation of all workers’ welfare to start Wednesday this week and NAHCO management decided to withdraw the suit and vacate the earlier court order obtained.

Reacting to the strike, the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Aviation, Mr. Nnaji Nnolim earlier in a statement had appealed to the unions and management of the company to dialogue and avert further disruption to aviation activities.

Mr. Nnaji urged the union to douse its agitation and show concern for the pains the action would bring on innocent Nigerian travellers both locally and internationally.

Responding to the development, the Group Executive Director, NAHCO, Dr. Olusola Obabori said, the Company engaged the Unions and other stakeholders because they understand the power of negotiation.

CBN URGES ILORIN RESIDENTS TO SWAP OLD NOTES FOR NEW NOTES

The Central Bank of Nigeria is asking Nigerians to quickly use the opportunity of the remaining days to exchange their old naira notes to new ones as the January 31st deadline will not extended.

The Ilorin branch manager of the apex bank stated this while monitoring the situation report in Ilorin.

Many bank customers besiege banks in Ilorin, to withdraw money either at the ATM points or inside the banking hall.

Officials of the Ilorin branch of the Central Bank of Nigeria are here to feel the pulse of the people.

And they do not hide their feelings.

But the CBN insists that the deadline will not be extended asking Nigerians to take advantage of the remaining days to do the needful.

Apart from exchanging the new notes in banks, the apex bank says it has also made available cash swap to allow those in the rural communities swap their old currency for new ones.

As at 11 in the morning, the money in this bank’s Automated Teller Machines had finished.

The newly redesigned naira notes were introduced by the CBN to control the amount of money in circulation, check counterfeiting, lower inflation rate and discourage ransom payment.