Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike has commended the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) for calling off its two-month strike in the state.
According to a statement signed by the Special Assistant (Media) to the governor, Kelvin Ebiri, on Wednesday, Governor Wike has, however, directed the Accountant General of the state not to pay judiciary workers for the first week of June in which the ‘no work-no pay policy’ was in force.
The state government had warned that it will enforce the no-work no-pay policy if JUSUN in the state fails to call off the strike by May 31.
Governor Wike explained that the state government’s decision not to pay JUSUN members for the first week of June was a result of the union’s failure to heed the directive to resume work before May 31.
Read Also: Judiciary Workers Suspend Strike, After More Than Two Months
He reiterated that Rivers State had been implementing full financial autonomy of the judiciary and that the strike was, therefore, unnecessary in the first place.
The governor maintained that the state government will not set up any budget implementation committee because it is unknown to law.
“Rivers State government is in full support of financial autonomy of the judiciary and has been implementing same. We have stated it before that we are not going to set up any budget monitoring committee in the state because it is unnecessary,” Governor Wike said.
He explained that under a federal system of government, it is only the executive arm of government, at all the tiers, that has the powers to present the annual budget to either state or National Assembly and also signed it into law.
He further asserted that the people of the state are law-abiding and will continue to insist that every action of government must be predicated on the rule of law.
