On Monday, delegates at the ongoing National Conference have  expressed anger at the inability of the federal government to pay them their allowances for the last five weeks.

This was coming just as the Inspector General of Police (IG), Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, asked the leadership of the conference and the delegates to address the plans by their aides and drivers to stage a protest today over their unpaid allowances.

Abubakar, in a letter to the leadership of the conference, said he had been informed about the decision of the aides to the delegates and drivers to stage a protest against non-payment of allowances to them.

Deputy Chairman of the conference, Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi, who read the IGP’s letter, added that even principal officers were yet to be paid.

While urging delegates to call their aides and drivers to order, he added that the conference would not tolerate any protest.

Akinyemi reportedly told the delegates, “Don’t give us the impression that you can’t control them (aides and drivers). If you cannot, security will control them. That I can assure you.”

The drivers and aides, who had complained against non-provision of salaries and allowances for them by the conference, had on many occasions threatened to stage protests.


However, delegate Chief Dan Nwanyanwu, who is also the National Chairman of the Labour Party (LP), , alleged that aides and drivers of principal officers of the conference and other ancillary staff were the one behind the agitation.


Another delegate, who is representing the market women at the conference, Mrs. Felicia Sani, frowned at the non-payment of allowances to delegates.

She said because of this, she had been forced by the circumstance to accommodate other representatives of market women at the conference.

Akinyemi in bid to control the situation, which was getting out of hand, said:  “May be I also need to point out that we also have not been paid for the same period. Every day, our assistant secretary in charge of finance goes to the office of the Accountant General of the Federation trying to get the releases. Documents have to be signed and we are working on it.

“The funds are available but is not yet released. We are aware that it has been published that funds are already in a private account. Let the media hear it that no money is paid. It is still with government.” Akinyemi said.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the conference, Justice Idris Kutigi, whose wife, Maryamu, died last Wednesday, an action that led to the forceful adjournment of deliberations, thanked the delegates for their solidarity at such a crucial moment.

He said, “I thank you very much for the support and cooperation with me and my family over the bereavement. I was surprised to see so many of you join us from the house to the cemetery.

“Most of you are Christians but you followed us to the mosque and to the graveyard and back to the house to offer prayers. I was overwhelmed. I am short of words of thanks. The way you all responded clearly made me ask why we should have religious problems in the country.”