By Adah Mansaray
Workers of the state-owned telecoms company, Sierratel have expressed dismay over non-payment of their salaries and other fringe benefits.
Most of the aggrieved workers who number in their hundreds have been serving the agency since 1994. They informed this press that things are relatively harsh as the company is not working to address their problems.
According to workers, the way things are going today with the company is never was since its history and establishment. Workers of the company have complained about the refusal of government and the institution to pay their salaries for over twelve months now.
The ill-fated workers have disclosed to this medium that the former Minister of Information and Communications, Mohamed Rado Swarray has held several meetings with staff and workers about the 12-month non-payment of their salaries but without yielding any dividend.
“Infact one of our colleagues died few months ago because of protracted suffering meted to him by Sierratel Company,” one of the workers told this press.
The deceased asked a very crucial question at the time about “What is really happening with Sierratel and the SLPP?” The worker in question has passed away arguably out frustration.
The late man revealed that whenever Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) took over power, Sierratel becomes a big White elephant as it renders nothing to society.
They explained that during ex-President Alhaji Tejan Kabba’s second term, Sierratel staff went without salaries for three or four months.
Comparatively, President Julius Maada Bio’s government seems to the worst. From 2019 to 2023, there has been no salary let alone leave and medical allowances. “This is frustrating for all of us as staff and workers of Sierratel company. It seems as if the company is dead beyond repairs,” workers lambasted.
What is more heartrending, worker explained is that, the Sierratel offices at Tower Hill, Brook-fields, Wellington and some other branches are now used as residence for the company workers.
“Most of these vulnerable workers use Sierratel as places of abode as they cannot afford a dime to pay house rents. The reason they harbour themselves at Sierratel offices” one of them cries out.
Looking at their present condition, the workers believe that there is nothing good about Sierratel at the moment. No tools, equipment and cables to work with; there also no pipes and absolutely nothing to write home about in the company.
In the good old days however, Sierratel was the gateway of all other mobile companies as they pass through them and pay well, but the gateway company has lost its glory owing to neglect and abandoning.
“How the government wants us to survive while the only institution to provide gateway for all other mobile companies has collapsed and cannot pay its workers?” one of the workers wonders.
They also told this press that they had protested more than seven times for their salaries but, the protests were aborted by state security forces. “During our protests, we were chased away by police with weapons,” most of them recounted.
Workers of company said the police arrested many staff and workers who protested for their salaries for no good reason.
“We don’t know our fate. We are today surviving through magic. We worked and we don’t get our salaries. We are not traders or business people who get money daily from our business. We were stuck and could not get out,” a poor and sad-faced Sierratel Staff cried out.
The workers’ stories are horrible as they leave their homes every blessed day for work and they do not get paid, adding that they had lost some of their colleagues due to illness because they had no source of income for their medical or hospitals bills.
Workers explained to Nightwatch that the Information Minister, Swaray claimed to have solved 99.9% of Sierratel problems although situation still remains the same.
One of the Minister’s bogus statements is that government will bring a private company for a take-over, but the move bears no fruit. “We have knocked on doors and done all we could but nothing changed at the office,” they said.
One of the workers appealed to Bio’s ‘TOK N DO’ government to come to their aid immediately to avert bad reputation for SLPP. If Sierratel dies, Sierra Leoneans will not hesitate that it was during SLPP that the company ceased to exist.