ADDRESS BY THE NATIONAL PRESIDENT OF AGRICULTURE
ADDRESS
BY THE NATIONAL PRESIDENT OF AGRICULTURE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES UNION OF
NIGERIA (AAEUN) COMRADE SIMON M.ANCHAVER TO THE STATE CONFERENCE OF
AAEUN HOLDING AUGUST, 2012.
On
behalf of the national executive council (NEC) of Agriculture and
allied employees union of Nigeria and the teeming members of our great
union, I bring you hearty greetings at this historic occasion of state
delegate’s conferences. These conferences are coming so soon in our
various state council, after our 2nd national delegates conference was held on 29th
of May, 2012, during which you gave us an overwhelming support and
clear mandate to a new national leadership which will lead the union for
the next four years. Comrade, on this historic occasion, I want to
assure you that ours shall be a leadership that is purposeful and
focused. We shall be swift in responding to AAEUN staff and members
issues and make our management/ employers accountable. The new national
leadership shall be dedicated to a system in which governance is
participatory accountable and transparent with respect for credible for
state and branch congress election that will grantee the emergence of
leadership at those two levels of governance that is a choice of our members. We
did it recently at the just concluded national delegates election held
at the agric house conference hall and there should be no reason why the
election going on simultaneously at the 37 state councils of AAEUN
should not be held at that same atmosphere and spirit.
Comrade,
on this historic occasion, reflect not only on the election of
committed leaders, but give a deep thought to the manifold problems
confronting our members of which or major concern is the enactment of
agriculture salary structure for our members, my administration shall
vigorously pursue this. To this end , we shall soon constitute a special
technical committee to come up with the draft memo for submission to
appropriate organ of the government. While the present administration of
president Jonathan is
according the agricultural sector some prominence in the scheme of
things, we have observed that some of the polices put on ground to
alleviate the problems of Nigerian farmers are not working and what
readily comes to mind is the new fertilizer policy. Across the country,
we have observed that the federal government fertilizer distribution system
is falling as the commodity is not been made available to the farmers
at the approved prices. The so called e-wallet voucher system was design
to enable farmers receive fertilizer allocation notices true their
mobile phone but this is not the case. I am happy to inform the
delegates that the central working committee (CWC) has given approval
for the union to apply for license from the federal ministry of
agriculture to enable her be involved in fertilizer procurement and
distribution. The state councils which shall service as sales outlets
shall be informed when things materialize.
Fellow
comrade, we know the importance of being close to the seat of power.
The new leadership has resolve to move the present national secretariat
of our great union to the city as from next year the modality to quickly
pay off our mortgage loan we the bank on the property has been worked
out. With your support my administration shall move the national
secretariat to the city come 2013.
AAEUN WITH THE AGGRIEVED GROUP
Comrades, we will recall that immediately after the merger conference between AAWUN/AASSA
In
2008 , the then general secretary of the union , the late comrade R.O
Idumajogwu, some staff and member state councils felt aggrieved in
the way the merger between the two unions was processed and moved out
of the union, this impasse was on for close to four years. Am happy to
inform the generality of our members that this same group has come back
and the seven staffers who reported for duty have been posted out to some state councils. More
importantly, the case has been withdrawn from the appeal court in
lagos. The relevant court documents issued to this effect dated 27th
July 2012 are being circulated to our state councils and management/
employers /NAAAE. We believe in the unity of our members hence my
administration saw the coming back of these our brothers and sisters as
the top priority to be addressed when we assumed power. Join me in
welcoming them back to the union. Their coming back has made the monthly
wage bill off the staff to shoot up slightly but we also believe that
when they fully settle down in their various location. They will play
their expected roles effectively and diligently to ensure that they add
to check-off dues generation in the states/ plantations they have found
themselves.
In
concluding this address, let me once again commend you for the solid
mandate given the new national leadership of AAEUN. I wish you a very
successful conference.
THANK YOU.
