Former staff of Kwara state-owned moribund sugar company, Tate Industries plc, have continued to groan in pains as the state government refused to pay them their entitlement 21 years after the factory folded-up. Some of the staff, who served the company for more than 20 years have appealed to the incoming government in the state to pay their two years salaries and other benefits.
The ex-workers, who staged a peaceful protest on the site of the defunct company lamented that successive governments in the state, since the company folded up in 1998, had turned deaf ears to the payment of their two years' salaries. With such messages as "Save our souls", "We are cheated", "Many of us have died because of no money for medicals," the protesters said 250 of them were affected.
Their spokesman, Adegboye Gabriel, said, "Tate Industries Plc was one of the enviable and flourishing manufacturing companies established during the first Republic in Nigeria. Things were going on smoothly for all workers then. "Payment of salaries of workers was regular until early 1994 when payment of salaries and other relevant social benefits accrued to workers became staggered.
Series of meetings between staff union and management with a view to solving the problem of non-payment of salaries yielded no positive results. "Presently, there is a backlog of salary arrears of two years, leave allowances and disengagement benefits of workers numbering about 250 yet to be paid.
"Our coming here today is to appeal to the Kwara state government to review the written terms of settlement made between the two parties (Tate Industries Plc and state government).
"Sadly, many of our co-workers have died, of course in the midst of running up and down for economic survival as a result of unexpected stoppage of source of income arising from the total closure of production activities in the factory," he said. Mr. Gabriel, who said the company as at 1998 was worth about N2billion, said that some of them had served the company for up to 25 years.
"To our dismay, the state government took over the factory's land to convert it to an extension of the Kwara State Univerity (KWASU) against the interest of the workers. "In this respect, the workers took the matter to court for solution but eventually the court urged the two parties to settle the dispute out of court. During the settlement we were given only nine plots to offset the entitlement of over 200 workers. "We are using this medium to plead to the government to monetize the land for us or pay our final entitlements as workers of Tate Industries Plc", he said.
Another speaker, Daniel Azira said: "We are appealing to the incoming government to come to our aid. Between 15 and 20 per cent of our colleagues have died; their children were thrown out of school. We don't have any other hope again except government has mercy on us and pay our entitlements and two years' salary arrears.
"We are appealing to the incoming government to set aside the judgment of the state High Court concerning the issue and help us. The elderly ones are dying, even those of us that still have energy cannot get job to do. The jobs are not there", he said.
