Seven ex-airways workers’ die in one week, awaiting N45b severance pay

More than one month after President Muhammadu Buhari approved N45b as severance package for over 2, 000 ex workers of Nigeria Airways, no fewer than seven ex-employees of the defunct airlines have died without reaping the fruits of their labour.

Mr Godwin Jibodu Chairman, Nigerian Airways Elders Forum disclosed this to newsmen in Lagos on Wednesday.

Jibodu lamented that the pensioners were wallowing in abject poverty despite serving the nation exceptionally during their time in Nigerian Airways.

He said,” We have lost seven colleagues within the last one week because they could not afford proper treatment for their ailments.

“This is very sad because the government has approved N45 billion since June for payment of our pensions and gratuities.”

Jibodu listed the recently deceased as Capt. Asuquo, Capt. Akintaju, Mr K. C. Amah, Mrs Bose Oladumiye, Mr Onyebuchi Anunobi, Mrs Adebayo Awoyinka, Mr T. Bellgam and Mr Ebenezer Akinbode.

He added that another colleague, Capt. Charles Ntanyi had been missing since August after boarding a commercial bus at night in the Ogba area of Lagos.

Jibodu said: “We are appealing to Nigeria as a nation not to forget the contributions of Nigerian Airways to national development.

“Nigerian Airways was a partner to the government and till date has helped in building the capacity of workers in the aviation sector. ”

He said since the money was approved, the pensioners had been making enquiries at the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Aviation and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to ascertain why the payment was yet to start.

“There is so much silence and we don’t know who is delaying the payment and it is very unfortunate, “Jibodu said.

Penultimate month, over eight ex workers of the carrier had died due to one ailment or the other. In some cases, they died because they could not afford less than N15, 000 medical fees.

The Federal Government has expressed regret over the reported deaths of some workers of the defunct Nigerian Airways occasioned by the delay in the payment of their entitlements.
The defunct national carrier was liquidated by former President Olusegun Obasanjo regime in 2005, and since then the workers had held series of protests over their unpaid entitlements.
Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika had after Buhari approved the funds said, “Governments, in the past, decided just to liquidate Nigerian airways without tending to the issue of the entitlements of the workers and they have been struggling to get that paid and we came in government and we took it very seriously”.
“I’m happy to announce that Mr President has approved N45 billion which has been confirmed to be the entitlements of these workers and Ministry of Finance has been instructed to pay and the ministry has written to me last week, to say that they have received the instruction to pay these workers, and therefore, they are setting up the modalities to pay.
“You should know it won’t pay through my ministry before somebody will say I take some of it. It will be paid by finance through a process, and that process will commence very soon,’’ he said.

Wole Shadare