Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State, on Tuesday, addressed the protesting members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Yenagoa, the state’s capital.
The protesting NLC members marched to the Government House gate in Yenagoa.
While addressing them, Diri acknowledged the importance of the issue and assured them of man-hour reduction.
He stated that the concerns raised by the Labour Unions were national matters, and State Governors have limited influence in addressing them.
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The Governor mentioned that the palliatives issue would be examined, but he encouraged workers to explore farming as well.
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He said:
“Seeing you protesting across the whole country, the power of government belongs to you the people, that’s why in anything I do, I see the people as number one. In any project I do, in any policy we bring out, we look at the effect on the people.
“But I believe that the President will listen to this protest. It is not out of place, you have done this protest for me also and for every other Nigerian.
“I can assure you that all of us are not sleeping. If it were something within our reach as governors or as a government of Bayelsa, you would have heard from me by now but it is beyond our reach. It is a national issue.
“But be that as it may, I want to assure you that as a worker-friendly government from day one, we will also consider the few issues you have raised here, particularly on the issue of man hour.
“I am going to dialogue with the Head of Service and the NLC chairman and we will look for the appropriate steps to take to reduce the workers’ man hours so that in terms of paying transport, you can be relieved.
“My advice again to our workers beyond earning your salaries, let’s go back to farming, it is high time we also think out of the box, this is the time we need to explore other areas, mostly farming or trading to augment your salaries.
“But for now, the issue of palliatives is always there, we will also look at it and address it properly.
“Once again, I want to thank you for your peaceful conduct and for the very cordial relationship that we have enjoyed as a government with the workers and the leadership of the workers and let’s continue to sustain that trajectory. Let us put Bayelsa first, let us put our country first.”
NLC’s ongoing protest was directed to all State chapters across the nation and was scheduled to end on February 28.
