NASS workers protest unpaid salaries, allowances

As the National Assembly resumes plenary after over two months of recess, legislative aides on Tuesday, October 9, 2018, protested nonpayment of their salaries and allowances.

Carrying placards and chanting solidarity songs, the legislative staff lamented their poor condition of living.

"We cannot even pay our children school fees and hospital bills," a female staff said.

Leader of the protest, Nyakari Abasi Etuk, told journalists that staff of the National Assembly have also been denied trainings by the current leadership.

Senator Bukola Saraki and Speaker Yakubu Dogara lead the Senate and House of Representatives, respectively.

Bukola Saraki, Yakubu Dogara ece-auto-gen

“Some of us they are owing us up to one point something million and these are funds we use to go on errands and other miscellaneous things. The last leadership of the national assembly paid us up to date”, he said.

“The issue of training is also there. We are supposed to have four trainings in a year. Ever since we started we have not had training. The training that we had was sponsored by the National Assembly service commission. All we are asking for is our entitlements.

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“We have tried we are calling on the leadership - so we are telling the world that they are owing us, they are taking us to the point where we have to address everybody. This is our plight this is our concern, we are telling everybody - today is the resumption date - most of the aides, some have died, some don't have money to send their children to school.

“The leadership as a matter of urgency - we are calling on the leadership to ensure that our allowances, to ensure we collect our duty tour allowances.

“Every year, allocations and budget are given to the national assembly which captures the legislative aides. So all we are saying, all we are asking for is for them to pay us,” he pleaded.