The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) has said that it has paid N155 billion to workers as salary arrears and terminal benefits in the course of executing economic reforms and privatisation. The Director General of the BPE, Mrs. Irene Chigbue, made the disclosure at the Northeast zone labour workshop held in Bauchi recently.

Chigbue, who was represented by Mallam Kashim Ibrahim, the Bureau's director of post-privatisation monitoring, noted that the gains of privatisation went beyond the direct benefits to the workers of the public enterprises. According to her, "The economy and the Nigerian workers, both private and public sector workers, therefore stand to gain from a well-executed reform and privatisation programme."

The BPE boss pointed out that it was in appreciation of the role that workers could play in promoting industrial growth and economic development that the National Council of Privatisation (NCP) positively responded to the demand of the workers for an upward increase in the percentage of shares reserved for them. The NCP, she said, had increased the shares reserved for workers in public enterprises from one per cent to 10 per cent of the 49 per cent of the federal government's stake in such enterprises, which she described as a quantum leap in the fortunes of Nigerian workers.

She, however, lamented that workers in the privatised enterprises have not paid for the shares, which have made the control and ownership of such shares difficult for them. "In some cases, workers could not claim the shares due largely to lack of basic information on how to acquire the shares or lack of financial means to do so," she stated.

Chigbue urged the labour leaders to rise up and muster the necessary resources and leadership to ensure that Nigerian workers enjoy the full benefit of the reserved shares.

She pledged that the Bureau would continue to be of assistance to the workers at ensuring that they are able to access the shares reserved for them. "On our side, we want to reassure you that you will find us ever ready and willing to work with you and render all necessary assistance to facilitate the acquisition of the shares by the workers," she assured.