By Bose Olamide
The leadership of the Parliamentary Staff Association Nigeria (PASAN) National Assembly chapter has dissociated the union from a communiqué purportedly signed by some members of the association calling for a protest against the management of the National Assembly, on the full take off of the reviewed condition of service of civil servants in the Assembly.
Comrades Suleiman Haruna and Kingsley Odi, the Secretary and Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the PASAN respectively while speaking with journalists on Tuesday at the National Assembly said that the association at no point agreed on or authored such a communiqué.
The duo reiterated the confidence of the union on the management of the National Assembly.
They stated that the union was in full support of the full implementation of the reviewed condition of service by the management of the National Assembly to the effect that all the staff of the parliament will benefit as envisaged in the already gazetted document.
According to the PASAN Secretary, “there has never been a time, officially or unofficially where we discussed the issue of going against the reviewed condition of service.”
Speaking further, Haruna said that the union was rather anxiously waiting and expecting the full implementation of the reviewed condition of service as captured in the document.
“The union initiated that, and we thank God that where we are today is that it has been fully captured and gazetted. Upon that we give our full support to that document.
“At this point, all what we are appealing for is the speedy implementation of the reviewed service so that it will come to be fully.
“And we believe in the system and institution, that is, the National Assembly, and we trust the capability of the current management of the National Assembly to fully implement the document.
Corroborating the position of the PASAN Secretary, the Public Relations Officer of the union reiterated that PASAN as a union was proud that the reviewed condition of service which he said was the brainchild of the union had finally come to be. He wondered how anyone can believe that the union will kick against its own initiative.
“I want to make it categorically clear that PASAN is never against the reviewed condition of service and can never be against the reviewed condition of service because from the records, the initiative to review the condition of service actually emanated from PASAN. So there is no way PASAN can be fighting its own initiative.
“What we are rather saying is that we want a speedy and full implementation of the reviewed condition of service, especially the financial aspect so that every staff of the National Assembly will go home smiling. It is never officially recorded that PASAN is kicking against the reviewed condition of service,” the PRO stated.
Speaking on the insinuation that there was a division on the leadership of PASAN, Comrade Odi said that the majority of the leadership of the union was in full support of the management of the National Assembly.
He said that 9 out of the 13-member executive council of the union are united in their support for the NASS management’s full implementation of the reviewed condition of service.
He described the four members of the union Executives as “individuals who want to use PASAN for personal political agenda.”
The duo said that PASAN as a major stakeholder in the affairs of the National Assembly has absolute confidence in the leadership of the National Assembly, including the President of the Senate, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila and the entire management of the Assembly led by the Clerk, Alhaji Sani Omolori.
