Presidents of staff of ethnic nationalities in Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC, have dismissed accusations levied against the commission’s board by the Delta State Chapter of Amalgamated Union of Public Corporation Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees, AUPCTRE.
This was contained in a statement made available to journalists at a press conference jointly addressed by the six ethnic nationalities in DESOPADEC in Warri on Monday.
The presidents debunked the accusations and absolved the board of wrongdoing, warning the Chairman of AUPCTRE in Delta State to stop blackmailing the DESOPADEC Board, led by Olorogun John Nani as Chairman and Chief Festus Ochonogor as Managing Director.
The signatories to the statement comprised Mr Akatakpo Gbesimi (Itsekiri), Engr. Felix Oyazimo (Ijaw), Chief Felix Ogboru (Urhobo), Mr. Peter Ejemite (Isoko), Mr. Nzesi Boniface Ossai (Ndokwa) and Mr. Isioma Brown (Ika).
The president of the Association of Itsekiri Staff in DESOPADEC, Mr Akatakpo Gbesimi, said that the chairman of the Delta State Chapter of AUPCTRE, Mr Lawrence Otueroro, was seeking cheap popularity by blackmailing the DESOPADEC Board.
Mr Akatakpo said the Board of DESOPADEC has commenced payment of the new minimum wage for Commission staff since November 2024, alongside October arrears.
He explained that the present Board of DESOPADEC is workers friendly, adding that the board has given promotions to workers with payment of six months’ arrears.
He disclosed that the present Board of DESOPADEC upgraded the sick bay facilities to better accommodate workers’ health needs.
The president of Isoko ethnic nationality in DESOPADEC, Mr Peter Ejemite, said Mr Otueroro and his co-travellers are parading outdated stories of outstanding 30 per cent payment of workers’ salaries, saying that agitation has been overtaken by the implementation of the new minimum wage.
On the payment of the end-of-year bonus, as promised by the Governor, Mr Ejemite asserted that the Board is awaiting the Governor’s approval.
The Presidents of the Ethnic Nationalities of DESOPADEC Staff noted that Mr Otueroro is not a Staff member of DESOPADEC, so his claims contradict the realities in the agency.
They also noted that the Board is gradually attending to the needs of workers.
The statement partly reads, “The present Board of DESOPADEC has started payment of new minimum wage for staff of the Commission since November 2024 and October arrears paid along November salary.
“We, ethnic Presidents of DESOPADEC, through interface with the Board, raised the need for the implementation of the new minimum wage as approved by the Governor, and the Board gladly noted it and has since started payment.
“People should go and do their findings if the staff have not started receiving the new minimum wage”.
The statement continued, “The present Board of DESOPADEC is worker-friendly. The Board has given promotion to workers and six months arrears. The staff of DESOPADEC beamed with smiles as they received leave allowances at the beginning of January 2025 through the effective implementation of the reviewed Conditions of Service.
“On the issue of payment of end of year bonus as promised by the Governor, the ethnic presidents asserted that the board is awaiting the Governor’s approval as the Board cannot do without his approval.
“Also, the Board has improved the working conditions of the Staff by upgrading the sick bay facility in the Commission where the health needs of the workers are being addressed and the Health Insurance Scheme (HIS) wherein a father, mother and four kids would be attended to in a reliable hospital.
“Consultations are ongoing between the ethnic Presidents and the Board approval is been awaited shortly.
“It is pertinent to note that this Board attended promptly to the needs of staff diagnosed with terminal diseases/illness with huge financial support”.
The Forum maintained that “the present DESOPADEC Board deserved commendation for always listening to the requests of the Staff and implementing agreed issues, though in phases”.
According to the statement, “It is noteworthy to assert that this Board has reinstated staff who were unduly laid off and their arrears paid with staff also due for upgrade being attended to and verification ongoing”.
The statement warned against actions from any quarters that are tantamount to distracting the DESOPADEC Board, stressing that “nobody can unionize the agency through the backdoor”.
It specifically urged the State Chairman of the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporation, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE), Mr. Lawrence Otueroro, to “verify his facts very well before commenting on affairs within DESOPADEC”.
