In a bid to save Nigerians, especially civil servants from the pangs of hunger from economic recession, organised labour has urged the Federal Government to take urgent steps to pay thousands of workers their outstanding salaries and allowances to further stimulate the economy.

The workers under the umbrella of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) noted that their purchasing powers would improve if President Muhammdu Buhari could pay the arrears including promotion bonuses. The ASCSN Secretary-General, Comrade Alade Bashir Lawal who said this is the right time to act, implored the government not to waste the opportunity.

He said: “We believe that since these federal civil servants and their dependants live in different parts of the country, payment of outstanding entitlements will have positive effects on the economy and douse the tension in the land.

“There is anger and hunger in the country and as a patriotic trade union, we have decided to bring this deplorable situation to the notice of government so that it can take necessary measures to stem the tide.”

The ASCSN wondered why the Federal Government that dole out N713.7 billion to states to pay arrears of salaries and allowances to their workers has refused to settle similar debt owed its own employees even when a committee it sets up to compute the outstanding liabilities completed its assignment and submitted report to the Presidency more than 10 months ago.

It lamented that a bag of rice now sells for N19,000 to N20,000 per bag more than the N18,000 monthly national minimum wage; while a gallon of kerosine costs N1,200 from about N400 few months ago as the price of petrol was increased from N87.50 to N145 per litre.

“Generally, while the cost of goods and services has continued to rise astronomically, salaries of workers have remained static and these are not even paid in some states for the past six months.