Nigerian Media Workers Demand removal of Managing Directors | On Strike

By: Victor Ulasi, Nigeria

The Workers of New Nigeria Newspaper have instigated an indefinite strike yesterday that led to the shutdown of the company, demanding that Managing Director of the Company Mr. Ndanusa Alao to be sacked.

The Nineteen Northern state governors of Nigeria own New Nigeria Newspaper industry, the company however owes her staff 3 months’ salary along with some other benefits and unpaid gratuity of pensioners for over 6 months.         

The protest for the removal of the company’s Managing Director by the workers later became violent as the worker placed posters demanding the probe of the Managing Director which took the intervention of the Kaduna state security outfit “Operation yaki” with over 12 police vehicles with armed men.

The Chairman and Secretary of the Joint Workers Committee of the company, Mr. Ibrahim Adamu said the Managing Director has failed to perform his duties, as to such his service are no longer required by the staff.

“For over three weeks I have not seen our so-called Managing Director, I wonder where and how he manages the company as he frequently absents himself from the office. For over 10 years there are no promotion of the workers, no increase in salary, instead we are been short changed and owned.”

In an interview with the staffs of New Nigeria Newspaper, they made it known that they can longer continue to be under the leadership of their managing director, they further stated, “we will not resume work unless Mr. Alao is relieved of his duty.”

Speaking with a female journalist, Mrs. Aisha Ibrahim who has worked the company for 16 years said there is nothing to write about for over a decade of working neither does she has anything to show for it.

“For 16 years I have worked for this company, for all those years I cannot be able to say this is what I have archive working a print media company. As a working class woman, I cannot afford to pay my children schools fess or help my husband in times of home need, throughout my work for those 16 years it have been always lending money from one person to solve a need and lending from another person to pay the other. Then can someone tell me need of me working while a full time house wife is far better off than me who claims to be working.”   

The workers New Nigeria Newspaper formerly embarked on a strike sometimes in November 2009 over seven months of none Payment of salaries while the pensioners also sealed off the company in December 2009 over 10 years of none benefits payments.

The workers called on the 19 Northern state Governors of Nigeria and the Federal Government to fire the Managing Director for mismanaging the fund of the workers and pensioners.

In an interview with a Management staff who wished to be made anonymous said, “The Management has no income and the 19 Northern Governors who are the owners of the Newspaper Company are not providing the funds to pay the workers and the pensioners. The Management can only pay the staff when the funds are made available and if the funds are not forth coming where the workers expects us to get the money to pay them.”

The workers made it known that as long as the managing director remains the strike also remains.

Posted by Jim Alexander on March 10, 2010. Filed under International Business News,WorldNewsVine. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.