NITEL/MTEL Crisis: Securitymen vow to down tools

Bode Adewumi, Lagos

John Odey, Information and Communications
MinisterTHE mess created by the crisis rocking the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) and its mobile arms, the Mobile Telecommunications Limited (Mtel) seems to be getting messier by the day as Tele-Info got to know last week.

The Federal Government had revoked the sale of the two companies to Transcorp last year and announced plan to have another investor to take over. But almost six months after, no investor has been announced.

This impasse has thrown many of the workers into trouble as their salaries were not paid as at when due. Not only this, many of them are idle since there were little or no activities.

This is not for the securitymen who have to ensure that properties and equipment in their care are not tampered with. But the securitymen, especially in the South-West area known as Area II are threatening hell over none payment of their salaries for the past ten months.

The workers told Tele-Info last week that living has been hellish because for them to feed and exist have become so difficult that they had to do something drastic in order to let the authorities know about their plight. The securitymen explained that they are attached to Mtel in the South-West region covering the states of Ogun, Oyo, Osun and Kwara, known as Area II. According to them, the authorities of Mtel contracted the security section of its operations out to private security outfits in 2005 and these outfits absorbed them and in fact, went ahead to employ even new men to complement the workforce.

They explained further that they had no disagreement with the arrangement as what was important was their salaries which were being paid until this present problem started. They disclosed that a security outfit, Bravo Guards with headquarters in Abuja got the Area II contract and that they have since been in its employ.

The securitymen lamented that the security outfit has not been treating them well since it took over the contract in 2005. They alleged many irregularities in its operations which eventually culminated in the non-payment of salaries since July last year.

The workers alleged that each time they asked the company’s representative what the problem was that the usual response has always been that they are being owed by Transcorp and so could not pay when they are not paid by owners of the company. Apart from this, the workers alleged that even though taxes are deducted from their salaries, yet no certificates were given.

They alleged that they have since discovered that their counterparts in other Mtel locations are being paid regularly and that they may say with all confidence that only securitymen in the South-West (Area II) are being owed huge salaries. They want the authorities to help them wade in so that they could continue to live like normal human beings.

The men were on the verge of tears as they narrated their awful experiences. According to them, if not for their belief in God, they would have left their duty posts and the areas would have been looted and vandalized by hoodlums. But according to them, their patience is seriously being threatened by the action of the authorities, especially, if nothing urgent is done to address the situation.When contacted on the phone, a representative of Bravo Guards said it was true that Mtel/Transcorp are owing his company about ten months retainership.This,he said was the reason why they are unable to pay the workers.