MURIC raises questions over unpaid benefits of 47,000 ex-PHCN workers
By KEMI KASUMU
According to MURIC, the ex-PHCN workers, operating under the platform of the United Ex-PHCN Staff Forum 2025, were owed 16 months’ salary arrears before their disengagement, alongside other agreed exit benefits arising from the privatisation of the power sector.
The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has called on the Federal Government of Nigeria to urgently intervene in the long-standing non-payment of benefits owed to about 47,000 former staff of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), who have remained unpaid since their disengagement in 2013.
In a press release issued on Wednesday, 14 January 2026, and signed by its Founder and Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, the human rights organisation said the affected workers had approached MURIC seeking intervention after years of failed engagements with government authorities.
According to MURIC, the ex-PHCN workers, operating under the platform of the United Ex-PHCN Staff Forum 2025, were owed 16 months’ salary arrears before their disengagement, alongside other agreed exit benefits arising from the privatisation of the power sector.
Professor Akintola recalled that a Federal Government committee set up in 2011 to resolve labour issues linked to the PHCN privatisation, chaired by Comrade Hassan Sunmonu, submitted a report that was never implemented. Instead, a new agreement titled “Agreement in Respect of Labour Issues Affecting Staff of PHCN” was signed on 11 December 2012.
The agreement, he said, involved the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, representatives of the Ministries of Labour and Power, the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), and labour leaders, including Joe Ajaero and Dede Okpara. It reportedly covered issues such as payment of exit benefits, gratuity, death benefits, settlement of salary arrears, post-retirement training, a 10 per cent equity share, and the resolution of non-core assets in power stations.
Despite subsequent circulars, including one issued by the BPE on 24 October 2017 reaffirming these commitments, MURIC said the benefits have remained unpaid.
The organisation condemned what it described as the failure of authorities to honour agreements reached with workers, warning that such actions erode public trust and worsen the plight of ordinary Nigerians. MURIC noted that many of the affected ex-workers had suffered severe hardship since their disengagement, including ill health, poverty, and children dropping out of school.
MURIC appealed to the Federal Government to act swiftly, stressing that prolonged neglect of the workers’ welfare had deep social and moral consequences. The group reaffirmed its commitment to advocating for the rights of disadvantaged Nigerians and giving voice to the oppressed.
The statement ended with a renewed call on the government to resolve the matter without further delay.
