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By Okey Maduforo Awka
Anambra state chapter of the Nigerian Labour Congress NLC has urged the state government to put on hold further deductions of salaries of workers pending the completion of the work of the Committee set up by government to investigate those allegations.
Recall that for the past three months workers in Anambra state have been complaining of deductions from their monthly salaries contending that it is unacceptable to them .
They lamented that even those who are punctual to work are victims of the deductions accusing the state government of adopting punitive measures against them due to their past five years absence from work during the Monday sit at home order by the separatist organization popularly known as the Indigenous People Of Biafra ( IPOB).
Speaking to reporters the Chairman of the NLC Comerade Humphrey Nwafor said that during the year 2026 Workers Day celebration, the matter was raised and Governor Charles Soludo set up a Committee made up of himself, the Trade Union Congress TUC Chairman, the Commissioner for Finance and the Head Of Service HOS to look into the matter.
He explained that from the meeting of the Committee it was resolved that government shout put on hold further deductions pending the the final report of the Committee and handed over the task of working on the deductions to the Commissioner for Finance and the Head Of Service.
“We met last week and resolved that we should for now put on hold those deductions while the Commissioner for Finance and the Head Of Service will now be managing the situation and what we are saying is that the Organized Labor will stay action for now while government looks into the matter ” he said.
When this reporter put a call across to the Head Of Service Barr Ngozi Anuli !wuouno , she flayed up complaining why journalists have been disturbing her with calls insisting that they should stop calling her .
This reporter had earlier called her this last Monday and she said she is in an Executive Council meeting that she doesn’t know when the meeting would end.
It was in respect of the last response that the reporter called again this Tuesday Jun 9th at around 1.25 pm but she shouted that she is in another meeting;
“I am in another meeting why are you journalists calling me every time ? Last one it was Tribune today it is Telegraph please you people should stop calling me ” he exploded.
However the Commissioner for Information Dr Law Mefor told reporters that the matter is being taken care of adding that some workers have started receiving the balance of their deducted salaries.
Mefor noted that those affected are workers at the out stations as according to him the Ministry of Finance is not aware of those that came to work or not but the duty of the the unit heads to direct the workers on where and how to clock in their attendance when they come to work.
“It is based on the information at the disposal of the Ministry of Finance about those that came to work or not through the number of workers that clocked in for attendance and this happens to those in the out stations and not those at the headquarters ”
“Again people have started receiving their full salaries and may of those who could not lock in are affected which is being testified”
“Here in the Ministry of Information we have about 185 workers and majority of them are at the out stations as information officers at the local government areas and we provided evidence of their attendance to work to the Ministry of Finance for payment” he said.
