MTN  office

Seriki Adinoyi 

Plateau Youth Council (PYC) in collaboration with the Plateau State chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has staged a protest in Jos, the  Plateau state capital over the unlawful termination of over 1700 MTN workers by the contracting firm, Communication Network Support Service Limited (CNSSL) and its blackmail of the state. The protesters also noted that if the sacked staff are allowed to remain jobless they might become available tools in the hands of mischief makers.

Addressing journalists Tuesday  in Jos, Chairman of the youth council, Comrade George Maqual and the State NLC Chairman, Comrade Jibrin Bancir urged the MTN to redeem the bad image the contracting firm has given them by getting another firm which would re-open the centre and reengage the youths.

They decried the recent move by the telecommunication firm in evacuating their equipments, adding this is an indication that the workers  may have finally lost their jobs,  stressing that though they cannot stop the evacuation, MTN should rather look into the case with a view of amicable resolution and possibly engaging alternative contracting firm to handle the job in the state.

“The accusation by the CNSSL against the Plateau youths is a cheap and unreliable blackmail; the Plateau youths are peaceful and will continue to be peaceful and have never in any occasion expressly or implied caused any violence or harassed any staff or damaged any property of MTN or be a threat to the MTN.

MTN should therefore disregard any contrary information from any quarter, but rather assist in addressing the issues so that the youths would not be kept idle as an idle mind is a devil’s workshop”, they said.

The youths further appealed to the MTN to prevail on CNSSL to pay   all the staff arrears, and also remit  in totality all pension fund deductions that had not been remitted to the Pension Fund Administrators.

They lamented that it was enough pains that while staff of all other call centres across the country are paid N96,000 per month those of Jos call centre were paid N37,000 per month before they were eventually sacked, adding that “the Jos Call Centre operation appears to be a repeat of George Orwell’s Animal Farm”.

CNSSL had sacked the Plateau youths it engaged for MTN about five months ago and eventually shut down the call centre over a month ago, citing insecurity as a reason for its actions.