Read What Governor Mimiko Did That Made Angry Workers Attack Him

Governor Olusegun Mimiko’s administration has been accused ofinsensitivity.Ondo state workers have reacted to the recently celebrated 40th anniversary of the state’s creation.Premium Times reports that the aggrieved workers accused the state government of insensitivity on the ground that workers have not been paid for three months, but government went ahead to spend millions of naira to celebrate state creation anniversary.Some of the workers who spoke on condition of anonymity said the Governor Olusegun Mimiko-led government was insensitivity to workers’plight.The workers said the week long event, which was also used to mark the governor’s seven years in office held between February 22 and 28 amid pomp and pageantry had put them and their families in tedious situation.A civil servant who requested anonymityfor fear of being victimised said:“I have five children and it is not easy to feed not to talk about doing other necessary things in the home. It is saddening that government squandered millions of naira on parties, while it owes backlog ofworkers’ salaries. It has become so hard that paying school fees for the children is now a matter of indebtedness, some of the schools are allowing us to pay in bits whenever any of the salaries come.”The civil servant, who disclosed that he has applied for a loan from his cooperative society, said he would continue to live on charity until the loan materializes.Gabriel, a civil servant said his situation deteriorated after exhausting avenues for loan acquisition.“I borrowed from the bank, and because salaries are no longer coming as usual, Ido not know what to do. I learnt of a finance house they call Sharp, Sharp. Some people are going there. I don’t know whether that will be an opportunityto get money, but paying back has always been the problem,”he said.According to the workers, the government recently paid November 2015 salary, and they are yet to collect December 2015, January and February 2016 salaries.The civil servants also accused the state’s labour union of insensitivity as it failed to compel the state government tomeet its obligation to workers.In a swift response to the civil servants accusations, the state’s chairperson of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Bosede Daramola, denied any compromise, and assured that the unionwas working round the clock to make sure workers get paid.The chairperson explained that the economic setback was not limited to thestate alone, promising that the workers would get their money as long as there were funds, saying: “The NLC would ensure the interests of workers are prioritised.”However, the chairman of the anniversary planning committee and commissioner for budget and planning, Akin Adaramola, while defending the alleged spending of millions of naira, said the celebration was modest enough, in accordance with the state’s economic realities.The state’s 40th anniversary celebration was graced by political and diplomatic bigwigs from within and outside the state. The event was held at the newly built international conference centre, also referred to as the“Dome.”The event which was televised live on TV, had abundance food and exotic drinks for the pleasure of the guests.The dignitaries present at the occasion which were given a tour of some key projects across the state include former secretary general of the commonwealth, Emeka Anyaoku; former information minister, Labaran Maku; former Labour Party (LP) chairman, Dan Iwuanyanwu, and two serving senators, Ben Muray-Bruce and Shehu Sani.