After losing two months and five days to strike actions which crippled administrative activities at 21 local government secretariats in Delta State, the leadership of the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) Wednesday, called for a ceasefire and pleaded with staff to return to work.

The strike was embarked upon by NULGE over backlog of salaries being owed local government workers in the state running into seven months.

Leadership of NULGE in the state, under the Chairmanship of David Ofoeyeno, who also doubles as Chairman of the state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress, had directed the council workers across the 21 local government areas to embark on the strike on May 11, this year due to the failure of the council authorities to meet up with financial obligations to the workers.

Addressing journalists in Asaba after a twin meeting of the union’s State Working Committee and State Executive Committee, President of NULGE, Comrade David Ofoeyeno, said workers should resume their various duty posts in the respective councils on Thursday.

He said the present administration of Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa has shown interest and demonstrated commitment to providing solution to the financial challenges of the councils, revealing that funds have been made available for the councils to pay at least three months.

Ofoeyeno, however, informed that the union will not hesitate to resume the strike action should the government reneged, insisting that agitations were still on to provide lasting solution to the financial crisis at the councils.

According to him, the problem will persist unless the state government takes over the burden of payment of salaries for primary school teachers, which he maintained, was eating deep into the coffers of the councils.

“We also use this medium to call on the state government to take over the payment of salaries of primary school teachers as a long term solution to this problem. I believe that no council will owe salaries if the burden of salaries for primary school teachers is removed by the state government,” he explained.

According to him, the union has only provided a short term solution by suspending the industrial action, pointing out that if the problem of owing salaries persists, the union will not hesitate to resume the strike.

He told journalists that NULGE has put machineries in place to monitor the funds that have been released to the councils for staff salaries to avoid diversion, adding that any council that fails to pay at least three months salaries would be picketed.

“We have put machineries in place to police and monitor the money released to the councils to avoid any case of diversion by the authorities. Any council that refuses to follow our guidelines, we will picket such council and make sure that the strike continues in such council,” he vowed.

•Photo shows Governor Okowa.

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