The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) on Tuesday explained why it has not been able to pay the housing grants approved for its workers about two years ago by the agency’s Board of Directors.
According to sources, some senior staff of NPA accused the Managing Director, Mohammed Bello-Koko of refusing to release the housing grants approved for them since July 2021.
Documents made available to newsmen by some of the aggrieved staff showed that the NPA Board at its meeting of July 15, 2021, held at Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, approved one-year total annual gross emolument as a housing grant for employees that have served meritoriously for 30 years and above.
The Board resolution was formally conveyed to the NPA Managing Director by the then Board Secretary/Legal Adviser, I.G. Umar via a departmental memorandum with reference number HQ/SEC/B/OP/B.11/216 and dated 16th July 2021.
The Board also increased the workers’ end-of-year bonus from 5% to 7.5% of total annual gross salary including furniture allowance. This is in addition to approving assistance for the family of deceased employees. The burial assistance includes transportation of the corpse and transportation of registered family members at the rate of N250,000 for a distance below 300km and N500,000 for a distance above 300km, among other benefits.
According to a statement, General Manager, of Corporate and Strategic Communications of NPA, Josephine Moltok, said the housing grant has not been paid to the concerned workers because “a board resolution still has to be approved by the Salaries and Wages Commission and the Budget Office”.
“Secondly, there was no way for us to get relevant government agencies to approve both a salary increase and gratuity payment at the same time, considering that the salary increase alone amounts to an increase of over N11 billion per annum.
“While a salary increase is meant for every staff, the grant is meant for only staff that has served upwards of 30 years. There was, therefore, a need for management to prioritize salary increase, which would benefit every staff,” she said.
Moltok further said that the agency intended to secure approval for salary increase separately from the grant.
“Salary increase was approved effective February 2023. That is because approval is yet to be secured from the National Salaries, Income, and Wages Commission. I hope this meets your need for clarification on the issue,” she said.
Recall that
Some senior staff of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) have accused the Managing Director, Mohammed Bello-Koko of refusing to release the housing grants approved for them by the Authority’s Board of Directors.
Documents made available to newsmen by some of the aggrieved staff show that the NPA Board at its meeting of July 15, 2021, held at Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, approved one-year total annual gross emolument as a housing grant “for employees that have served meritoriously for 30 years and above”.
The Board resolution was formally conveyed to the NPA Managing Director by the then Board Secretary/Legal Adviser, I.G. Umar via a departmental memorandum with reference number HQ/SEC/B/OP/B.11/216 and dated 16th July 2021.
The Board also increased the workers’ end-of-year bonus from 5% to 7.5% of total annual gross salary including furniture allowance. This is in addition to approving assistance for the family of deceased employees. The burial assistance includes transportation of the corpse and transportation of registered family members at the rate of N250,000 for a distance below 300km and N500,000 for distance above 300km, among other benefits.
However, some of the workers, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the NPA Managing Director is flouting the Board resolution on the housing grant by refusing to release it to the workers that are entitled to it.
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Source: shipsandports.com.ng
