FayoseNigeria’s Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has dragged Nigerian governors to the International Criminal Court, ICC, over alleged crimes against humanity for not paying already impoverished workers for months.
The group said the non-payment of workers’ salaries by several state governments in Nigeria “has made life impossible to live for the workers and families”.
In a statement to TheSimonAtebaNews, SERAP said it has requested Mrs. Fatou Bensouda, Prosecutor, International Criminal Court, to use her office and position “to investigate allegations of collective punishment and crimes against humanity against tens of thousands of Nigerian workers as a result of non-payment of their salaries for several months.”
Over 25 out of 36 Nigerian States owe workers many months of unpaid salaries. While some governors have blamed the non payment of salaries on dwindling federal allocations due to the fall of oil prices and bombings of oil installations by the Niger Delta Avengers, critics have alleged that governors used billions of naira to prosecute the 2015 elections, leaving state coffers empty, although their private bank accounts are loaded.
The governor of Ekiti State triggered protests on Thursday following revelations last month that while the state is struggling to pay workers for several months, Governor Ayodele Fayose has billions in his personal bank account.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, froze the account on suspicions that the money was illegally acquired from federal government coffers. But Mr. Fayose blamed President Muhammadu Buhari for witch-hunting the opposition and trying to silence him. Mr. Fayose has been dubbed President Buhari’s critic-in-chief.
SERAP in its petition dated 7 July 2016 and signed by SERAP executive director Adetokunbo Mumuni, did not mention any particular governor, but said it was “seriously concerned that non-payment of workers’ salaries by several state governments in Nigeria has made life impossible to live for the workers and families”.
“We also urge you to bring to justice anyone who is responsible for the inhumane acts committed against Nigerian workers and prohibited under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court to which Nigeria is a state party.”
The petition read in part: “SERAP contends that severe deprivation and mental or physical health challenges faced by Nigerian workers as a result of the non-payment of their salaries fulfil the requirements of this provision. This means that individual liability may attach to governors who continue to hide under the excuse of ‘limited allocations from Abuja’ to deny these workers the fruit of their labour.”
“The state governors ought to know that their actions and/or omissions would likely to cause serious physical or mental suffering or a serious attack upon the human dignity of workers whose salaries are not paid.”
“Non-payment of salaries for several months have reduced Nigerian workers to ‘bare life’, or life not worth living, thus taking away their human dignity. The inhumanity of the non-payment of workers’ salaries is illustrated by the serious threats this poses to the workers’ physical and mental health, and family life as well as their ability to contribute to the development of the country. The non-payment of salaries has created an environment of powerlessness for several workers and perpetuated a system of impunity in many states.”