JUST IN: Ministry of Finance workers demand Adeosun’s removal

The Workers of the Ministry of Finance on Monday embarked on a protest demanding the immediate removal of the Minister, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, over non-payment of what they termed their allowances, which amounted to N1.2 billion.

The workers accused Adeosun of collecting her own allowances without any consideration for theirs.

One of such allowances, they alleged, was the N30 million for house rent annually.

They equally said she was high handed.

However, sources within the ministry said the protest was unwarranted.

The Permanent Secretary, Mahmud Isa-Dutse, said the N1.2 billion was an illegal payment that the workers have been receiving at the beginning of the year before now.

The money is said not to be captured in the Ministry’s 2016 Budget, hence Adeosun’s position not to pay the staff the sum.

A source close to Adeosun in the Ministry said there was no basis for the workers’ protest.

He said the Ministry was not owing the workers salary.

He said the only salary yet to be paid was that of June, which is not yet due for payment.

He described the demand for the N1.2 billion as “illegal” as it was not captured in the 2016 Budget.

As at press time, policemen have been deployed to the Ministry to prevent the protest from getting out of hand.

The protesters were restricted to the space within the Ministry.

They were not allowed to get onto the road.

Among the placards the workers had with them were those that read: “Kemi Adeosun must go”; “You are destroying Federal Ministry of Finance”; “Inflation is 15% courtesy of Adeosun”.

“PMB agent of positive change, Adeosun agent of negative change”; “Adeosun score card is zero”; and “Adeosun collects N30m house rent.”