The Rivers State House of Assembly (RSHA) legislative aides have again cried out to the entire concerned indigenes of Rivers state to intervene and save them from what they termed modern day slavery that they have been subjected to by the Rivers State Government under Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi who is their employer.
It would be recalled that barely few weeks ago, the Legislative aides cried out over non-payment of their salaries. Their cry this time is over short-payment of their salaries
Trouble broke out when the legislative aides were called upon to receive their seven months owed salaries. Unknown to the legislatives aides, the authority concerned had programmed to short change them of the seven months salaries owed them by the government.
Our news desk investigation revealed that the legislative aides were promptly called to receive their seven months salaries by the government but they were surprised to see that only three months’ pay was packaged for them. Most surprising was when the legislatives aides discovered that instead of the normal N15,000 pay for each of the legislative aides, N5, 000 was deducted out of the three months for each of them.
As at the time of filing this report, the legislative aides are yet to be given their correct pay by the government.
Sad enough for the legislative aides, their allowances too were not considered for payment. While the angry legislative aides are praying the Amaechi-led administration not to subject them to their untimely graves, they do not even know when and how their salaries will get to them as the mode of payment is not unified.
They stressed that an unsure pay day is another factor troubling them, while their masters, the legislators, receive their regular salaries and allowances on regular basis each month without fail.
Speaking to The Newswriter under anonymity, the entire legislative aides of the Rivers State House of Assembly called on well-meaning citizens of the state to come to their aid by appealing to the state executive to please save them from untold sufferings which the situation had already dragged them into.
“Can you imagine that a whole N5,000 was cut from our salaries when even the entire salary when paid is not enough to feed the family?” one of them asked.
In a clear passionate voice, the confused legislative aides noted that their dependents are in pain as their medical bills make them hang in the balance of life as they could not afford to settle their loved ones bills, most especially those who have elderly ones, not to forget the students and new born babies in their nuclear families.
The situation is so critical that they regretted being in service, preferring to be idle without a job, instead of coming to work and seeing their masters, the legislators, eating fat each month while they are working with them in the same office.
They therefore urged elder statesmen to plead with the governor to also consider them as people working in his administration that needed to settle their bills through the employment granted them in the legislative system of the state.
Calls to hear from the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Otelemaba, proved abortive as the calls could not go through.
Allanso Jonathan Allanso
