An official of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Lagos State Command, Thomas Ayorinde, has been detained by a senior official of the corps, identified as Mba, for complaining about an alleged deduction of his allowance.
It was learnt that Ayorinde and 50 other officials had been selected by the corps in July 2015 as members of a joint task force deployed to control gridlock usually caused by trucks plying the Apapa-Wharf area.
Our correspondent gathered that the Lagos State Government, which engaged the operatives, had promised to pay each official N1,500 per day, amounting to N45,000 per month.
It was gathered that the agencies comprised the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Air Force, the Nigerian Police, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency and the NSCDC, among others.
It was learnt that the men involved in the exercise recently got two months allowance in arrears.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the Air Force paid each of its officials N90,000 for the two months, army gave each operative N75,000, while police paid N60,000 each to its men. However, Ayorinde and his colleagues, who spoke with our correspondent, said they were paid N20,000 each for the same period.
Our correspondent learnt that Ayorinde and others had petitioned the Office of the Public Defender on the issue to no avail.
The petition, dated November 5, 2015, read in part, “On the 15th of July, 2015, 51 personnel of the NSCDC were deployed in Apapa JTF operation. We spent four months. We later got two months payments out of the four months that we had worked.
“The NSCDC decided to pay each official who went for the operation the sum of N20,000 and it is in view of this that we have come to your good offices. We therefore solicit your legal assistance to investigate this matter and tell NSCDC to pay us the money that we are entitled to.”
Ayorinde said his colleagues were afraid to table their discontent about the deduction to the NSCDC officer, but he summoned courage and approached him.
He said, “He (Mba) said the corps used part of the money to repair our towing van and quarter guard. I tried to let him understand that we are supposed to be paid in full, but he termed it insubordination and ordered that I should be put inside the cell. I was there for nine days. He came to meet me there, but I stood my ground.
“This kind of injustice is common in the command and I think it should be addressed. My colleagues are afraid for fear of being dismissed. If I am eventually sacked because of this, I will be pleased that I satisfy my conscience.”
Another affected official, who did not want his name in print, corroborated Ayorinde’s account.
He said, “It is true that 51 of us were affected, but we do not want to lose our job. Ayorinde met with the DC on the deduction of our allowance and he was locked up. We learnt that the air force paid their officials N90,000 for two months while the army paid N75,000. We don’t know why ours was different. We were paid N20,000.
“We were told that the state government gave money for 29 officials instead of 51, which is a lie. Even policemen that were almost 200 were paid N60,000 each.”
A soldier, who is a member of the JTF, confirmed to our correspondent on the telephone that soldiers that participated in the exercise “were given N75,000 each for two months,”
A policeman, who spoke on condition of anonymity, also confirmed that he got N60,000 allowance for two months’ service.
The spokesperson for the command, Mefor Chibuzor, said the officials were paid according to what the command received from the state government. He, however, did not state the amount paid by the state government.
He said, “The allegation levelled against NSCDC Lagos State Command by one Mr. Ayorinde is baseless and uncalled for. He is not a regular personnel of the corps, but a volunteer. Sometime this year, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode set up a joint task force comprising military and paramilitary agencies towards ensuring the eradication of the gridlock being experienced along the Mile 2/ Wharf Road, which our corps was part of.
“The Lagos State Government paid a stipend to all the agencies involved for them to remunerate the officers based on the number of personnel involved in the assignment. All the NSCDC personnel who are part of the ongoing exercise have been paid based on what the corps received from the state government.
“The corps as a statutory arm of the Federal Government receives its monthly subventions as and when due in order to meet up with its obligations. We don’t depend on the allowances of our officers for us to do what is needful.”
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