Business

Ex-Dockworkers Protest Non-Payment Of Wages

Published

10 years ago

July 22, 2016

Some ex-dockworkers
have on Monday in Lagos demonstrated over alleged non-payment of arrears of N33,000 minimum wage by the management of ENL Consortium as agreed in 2008.
The workers who staged a peaceful protest in front of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) headquarters in Marina, Lagos told our correspondent that what they were paid was on tonnage.
The ex-workers said that apart from the unpaid minimum dockworkers’ salary, the annual increment of 10 per cent on the minimum wage had also piled up.
ENL Consortium is the operator of Terminals C and D of the Lagos Port Complex, Apapa.
The workers, who spoke through Mr Hope Ogolekwu, said that though the company had disengaged them, their full entitlements should be paid.
They also demanded a revisit and review of the payment of N350,000 redundancy, terminal and hazardous benefits .
Ogolekwu frowned at the non-remittance of their contributory pension funds from 2006 to 2011.
He further alleged that the management of the terminal did not pay their annual leave allowance for 10 years.
“We did not get our tax clearance certificate and no health insurance,’’ Ogolekwu said.
In a reaction, the management of ENL Consortium disowned the dockworkers who staged a protest at the NPA headquarters.
The Legal Adviser of ENL Consortium, Mr Uzamot Boye, said that at the time of the protest, its staffs were all at their duty posts inside the port carrying out their various tasks.
“It is malicious to say our dockworkers protested. It is not true. All our workers are at work.
“Those who protested were those who have since been disengaged from the port and who have been paid their terminal benefits. You can verify this from the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN).
Boye said “All our workers are at their duty posts as we speak. They are happy on their jobs. They are all very busy”.
He said that the Maritime Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MWUN) would have issued notice and been in the forefront of the protest if the protesters were genuine port workers.
It would be recalled that the same set of people had carried out similar protest in the past at the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) headquarters in Apapa but were told that they had been disengaged from service and due allowance paid to them.
“ENL Consortium is a people-focused organisation. We empower our people and enable them to be the best.
He said “Our Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer places the welfare of workers above every other consideration.’’
Mr Adewale Adeyanju, the President, Dockworkers Branch of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN), confirmed that the protesting dockworkers had been disengaged from the port and paid their entitlements as stipulated under the National Joint Industrial Council (NJIC) agreement, warning against the return of thuggery at the port.
Adeyanju said issues affecting maritime labour must be discussed at the table with employers, rather than the resort to the arm-twisting tactics of the past.
He said the payment of gratuity to disengaged dockworkers happened for the first time in the history of the maritime industry in the country this year, “a development which highlights a big plus for both the union and terminal operators’’.
“For the past 30 to 40 years, we have not had anything like terminal benefit for dockworkers and it is under our administration that we are getting what a responsible dockworker ought to get. It is a starting point in the industry,” Adeyanju said.
He said the dockworkers that elected to leave the service of their employers were misguided on what they were entitled to collect as retirement benefits.
He said, “This has never happened before and I think someone is inciting these dockworkers by saying they are entitled to N33,000 a month plus the amount of tonnage they stevedore. But you know this is not correct.’’
According to him, there is a tonnage operation and there is time-related wages, which stands for permanent employment.
“I think there is a mix up somewhere and I have addressed all of them to let them know that we have permanent staff and people that are on tonnage.
“You are paid on a daily basis on the amount of tonnage that you stevedore,” Adeyanju said.

Business

Boat Mishap Kills Pastor, Wife And Church Members In Brass Water

Published

16 hours ago

May 18, 2026

The Tide

A boat accident in Bayelsa state has killed a serving Pastor, Wife and other church members along Brass waterways

The sad incident happened at Odioama in Brass local government area of Bayelsa State when the Pastor, wife and members of his church were in a programme.

?Tide confirmed that the lifeless body of the Pastor’s wife has been found and deposited in a mortuary while the remains of her husband ,the Pastor is yet to be recovered

as search party are still ongoing.

Although the real cause of the boat Mishap is not yet known as at the time of this report, our Correspondent gathered that the identities of the Pastor, wife and church members were not disclosed to the public.

The mishap, Tide gathered occurred on Friday morning when the church members were on a boat transit

The Bayelsa State government and the state police command are yet to issue official statement’s on the sad accident

By: CHINEDU WOSU

Business

Rivers Workers Seek Scrapping Of Contributory Pension Scheme

Published

16 hours ago

May 18, 2026

The Tide

The Rivers State Council of Nigeria Civil Service Union has called on the State Government to urgently scrap the contributory pension scheme, describing it as unfavourable to long-serving civil servants in the state.

Chairman of the union, Chukwuka Osuma, said this in an interview with newsmen in Port Harcourt, recently.

Osuma said the current pension structure has continued to worsen post-retirement hardship for workers.

He noted that the contributory pension scheme had failed to provide adequate retirement security for workers who had spent many years in service, especially those approaching retirement age.

According to him, civil servants who had served for more than 20 years were among the worst affected under the scheme, insisting that many retirees could no longer cope with prevailing economic realities.

He also informed that the Union has made moves to showcase their concerns, pleading with Governor Siminalayi Fubara to abolish the pension policy and introduce a more favourable arrangement for affected workers.

“The union was not opposed to pension reforms, the contributory scheme should only apply to newly employed workers or those with fewer years in service”, he said.

Osuma explained that workers who had already spent decades in the civil service ought to remain under a more secure pension structure capable of guaranteeing stability after retirement.

The labour leader further noted that inflation and the rising cost of living had continued to erode the value of retirement savings, thereby increasing the suffering of pensioners across the country.

He also appealed to the state government to consider extending the years of service in the civil service from 35 to 40 years and the retirement age from 60 to 65 years.

Osuma argued that such adjustment had become necessary in view of present-day economic realities and changing conditions in the workplace.

The unionist also reviewed that similar policies had already been adopted in some sectors and jurisdictions, expressing optimism that the State could also implement the reforms for the benefit of workers.

He however, commended Governor Fubara for approving an N85,000 minimum wage for workers in the state, noting that the amount was above the national benchmark of N70,000.

Osuma also acknowledged the government’s efforts in the area of workers’ promotions and bonuses, but insisted that pension reforms and extension of years of service remained critical to the long-term welfare and stability of civil servants in Rivers State.

By: King Onunwor

Business

FG Begins South-West Tour To Promote New Cooperative Bank

Published

6 days ago

May 13, 2026

The Tide

The Federal Government has launched the South-West zonal engagement and ministerial advocacy tour on the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria share capital mobilisation, sensitisation and cooperative sector digitalisation.

Reports say the initiative was launched through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.

According to reports, the advocacy tour, organised by the ministry’s Federal Department of Cooperatives, began on Monday in Lagos.

Speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security and Supervising Minister of Cooperative Affairs, Dr Aliyu Abdullahi, said the initiative was part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Abdullahi described the exercise as a strategic effort to reposition the cooperative sector as a key driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity.

“Today represents a defining moment in our collective determination to reposition the cooperative sector as a major driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity,” he said.

The minister noted the modern cooperative movement in Nigeria originated in the South-West following the 1934 Strickland Report, which led to the enactment of the Cooperative Societies Ordinance of 1935.

According to him, the decision to commence the sensitisation and share capital mobilisation tour in the region is symbolic, as it marks a return to the roots of cooperative development in the country.

Abdullahi said the advocacy tour was a direct outcome of resolutions reached at the 8th Regular Meeting of the National Council on Cooperative Affairs held in Abuja in March 2026.

He said the council approved the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme, a comprehensive framework designed to strengthen the cooperative sector and align it with the administration’s goal of building a one-trillion-dollar economy.

“The reform programme focuses on seven strategic pillars, including governance reforms, cooperative financing and the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria, digitalisation, capacity building, value chain development, inclusion of youths, women and persons with disabilities, and strategic partnerships,” he said.

He said the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria and the digitalisation of the cooperative sector were the two major transformational initiatives under the programme.

“The Cooperative Bank of Nigeria is aimed at rebuilding a strong cooperative financial system capable of supporting cooperators, farmers, artisans, traders, SMEs, youths, women and persons with disabilities with accessible and affordable financial services,” he said.

Abdullahi emphasised that the proposed bank would be government-enabled but not government-funded.

“Government is not establishing the bank as an owner, nor will it rely on Treasury Single Account funds.

“The role of government through the FMAFS is to provide policy support, stakeholder coordination, regulatory facilitation and an enabling environment under the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme,” he said.

Also speaking, the Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to cooperative sector transformation.

She described cooperatives as critical tools for promoting inclusive growth, grassroots productivity, food security, financial inclusion and community wealth creation.

Ambrose-Medebem said Lagos State would continue to support reforms and collaborate with stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (2025–2030).

“Together, let us build a cooperative ecosystem that is modern, transparent, digitally enabled, financially inclusive and globally competitive.

“Let us build cooperatives that not only mobilise savings, but also mobilise prosperity,” she said.