Against the backdrop of imminent shut down of power supply to the entire nation by the labour unions of Power Holding Compnay of Nigeria (PHCN), the Minister of Power, Barth Nnaji, has said that all outstanding labour issues have since been resolved.

The minister, who spoke through his media assistant, Mr Cedon Adinuba, in a telephone chat with Nigerian Tribune, assured staff of the defunct PHCN that they would not be sacked as being rumoured by their labour leaders.

He said: “The headquarters of PHCN has been shut down and all the staff have been redeployed to other power outfits like the Kainji, Olorunsogo, Omotosho and others. But the union leaders have threatened them not go collect the redeplyment letters saying they are disengagement letters.”

According to the Electric Power Sector Reform (EPSR) Act 2005, the PHCN ought to have been liquidated in 2007, but the Federal Government decided to resolve all labour issues before embarking on its liquidation. “Now, the winding down of PHCN will soon be concluded and the new independent owners will soon be announced during the first quarter of 2012,” he said.

He urged the labour union to respect the laws of the land (EPSR Act 2005) because “if you don’t, you have yourself to blame for violating the laws of the land.”

The workers under the aegis of National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) had threatened to down tools and incite a nationwide blackout if government refused to take steps towards resolving all labour related issues in 48 hours.

They staged a peaceful protest last week against the order by the minister to transfer them out of Abuja. The workers had gathered outside the company’s corporate office in Abuja to express displeasure with the decision to deploy them to state offices.

Comrade Temple Iworima, Secretary of National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) coordinating FCT, Niger, Nasarawa and Kogi States, said the workers were not happy with the decision to move them to the states.

Iworima said that the minister had directed the PHCN management to effect the immediate transfer of all the staff in the headquarters out of Abuja.

He described the sudden transfers as ‘illegal’, adding that PHCN staff were employees of the Federal Government and would not work for a new company the government was directing them to.

“When a person has contract with a company, how can another person come and say he should go and meet another company?” Iworima asked saying that the Federal Government should settle the issue of the 10,000 casual workers engaged by PHCN, as well as the payment of 50 per cent salary increase agreed upon.