Workers of Kwara State Printing and Publishing Corporation, publisher of The Herald Newspapers, on Thursday staged a peaceful protest over what they described as poor working condition.
The aggrieved staff also decried the poor condition of their offices, the entire vicinity in which the media outfit is located as well as non-payment of accumulated allowances.
The protesters carried placards with various inscriptions such as: “Salary Discrepancies”, “Epileptic Production”, “Backlog of Promotions”, “Bad Working Environment” and Non-payment of salaries”, among others.
The staff, under the aegis of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and National Union of Printing, Publishing and Paper Products’ Workers (NUPPPPROW), shut down the gate leading to the premises of the newspaper house in Ilorin, the state capital.
Speaking with Journalists, the NUPPPPROW Chairman, Comrade Abdulrasaq Ahmed, said the workers were protesting bad working environment and dilapidated state of infrastructure in the outfit.
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He said that staff have had to contend with poor working condition for almost nine years without any hope in sight.
The NUPPPPROW chairman stated that the staff used to take refuge under the tree because of the unbearable nature of their offices.
Ahmed decried the epileptic production of the newspaper, which used to be on the news stand four times in a week, but now struggling to come out once in a week.
He said the situation had rendered many able staff redundant.
The state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mallam Mohammed Ishak Sabi, while addressing the aggrieved workers, called for calm, promising to table the grievances before the state Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed.
He lauded the workers for being civil and law abiding in their agitation.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Herald is one of the oldest state newspapers in Nigeria. (NAN)