Gov. Dickson
Hundreds of workers in the local government areas in Bayelsa have besieged the premises of Bayelsa House of Assembly to demand expedited passage of local government autonomy bill.
More than 500 council workers Wednesday blocked the entrance to the Bayelsa House of Assembly gates and demanded an audience with principal officers of the house.
The development compelled members of the Bayelsa House of Assembly to suspend their session to address the protesting local government workers who had blocked the entrance to the Assembly Complex.
Addressing the workers, Hon. Kombowei Benson, Speaker of the Bayelsa House of Assembly said that the bill was already receiving the attention of the Bayelsa legislators.
“ The bill is already before us and we are going to look into it, but the way we conduct our business in the house is based on deliberations, debates and then we put issues to vote.
“ I urge you to be patient and I do assure you that we shall not delay the bill but we must ensure that due process is followed so that whatever we do will stand the test of time,” Benson said.
Speaking to the workers, Comrade Akpos Ekiegha Bayelsa Chairman of Nigerian Union Local Government Employees (NULGE) said that as a law abiding union, the workers would await the outcome of the bill from the assembly.
He said that the workers took the steps to add their voices to the clamour for local government autonomy in the state. He said that financial autonomy of the third tier of government would ensure rapid development at the grassroots.
The protest led to heavy traffic build up in the Amarata area of Yenagoa forcing motorists to divert to other routes to get to their destinations within the state capital. The Bayelsa Police Command sent four patrol vans with some 20 armed policemen to fortify security at the assembly.
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