The Senior Deputy General Secretary, National Union of Textile & Garment Workers of Nigeria Alh. Umoru Mohammed spoke recently with Victor Ulasi about the issues and state of textile industries in Nigeria.
The state of textile Industry and the well-being of over 3500 workers who lost their jobs due to the closure of the textile industries have continued to be an issue of concern among the government, stakeholders, and the masses. Over the years, this concern has been related to evolution of crude oil, unavailability of raw materials, infrastructural decay in situation of government interferences and lack of equipment upgrade. Resulting from this have lead to the closure of one hundred and fifty out of one hundred and seventy five textile industries in Nigeria leaving only 25 textile industries working on the mercy of nature.
In a bid to reverse the dwindling fortunes of Textile Industries, the Federal Government intervened with a stimulus package of N70billion to bailout the textile industries, aimed at ensuring the textile industries regain their past glories and continue to be relevant in the economy and development advancement of Nigeria through production of quality and globally competitive goods.
Q: What are the states of textile industry in Nigeria now compared to what it is used to be?
A: The status of the textile industries now is incomparably to what it is used to be before the evolution of crude oil, the glories of the textile industries are no more. Despite the efforts of the Federal Government to revive the textile industries it looks like the Federal
Q: Government have only mocked the textile industries rather than coming to their rescue.
What actually lead to the closure of the textile industries?
A: So many things lead to the closure of the textile industries. The evolution of crude oil was one of the major causes of the closure of the textile industries. When crude oil was discovered, the government paid little or no attention to the textile industries, not only the government but also the stakeholders drawn their attention from textile industries to crude oil. The invention of crude oil has done more harm than good in Nigeria because since the evolution of crude oil the textile industries undergoes the difficulty of obtaining the raw materials, and another issue is the area of government interferences in the activities of the textiles, all lead to the closure of the textiles.
Q: How many textile are in Nigeria and how many are still working now?
A: There are one hundred and seventy five textiles Industries in Nigeria, one hundred and fifty closed down while only twenty-five are still working until date.
Q: What capacity of workers are each of the textile industries likely to hold?
A: In Kaduna state, there are ten textile industries, which are all closed down and each of the textile industries has the minimum of four thousand workers because the total number of worker who were thrown back to the labor market are more than thirty five thousand.
Q: What about the stimulus package of N70billion to bailout the textile industries by the Federal Government?
A: Well, even right from the onset when the Former President Olushegun Obasango said he is giving out the money to the textile industries, it ended up been a political and fake promise because they end up giving the textile industries a symbolic cheque. A symbolic cheque has no meaning anywhere, there is no where you can be paid by a symbolic cheque, so is just a political and a fake promise they made to deceive the textile industries because by the time the textile industries are asking where is the money, the money is not there. Then we discovered that the N70billion they are talking about they are looking for a way to source for loan from overseas which have not even materialized and they are giving cheques to the textile industries. Is all propaganda they used to deceive the textile industries and the public.
Q: What have the National Union of Textile & Garment Workers done so far about that?
A: We later confronted the Federal Government and said ok, now since that did not work because they have a tendency that the foreign countries and the foreign financial houses said that since Nigeria just paid some of their loans they would not be able to be entitled to any loan until after 2 years. On that ground they decided to come back to our banks here Nigeria and talked us that anyone who refuses to collect the cheque is on his own. So, the textile industries thought that they have the money but unfortunately when they collect the cheque it ends up been a symbolic cheque. Now, the government said they will get the money and they started talking with the banks and The United bank for Africa (UBA) agreed since last year that they are going to give the money. Then the government has told us that an agency will go round to analyze the state of the industries to find out whether the claims are genuine or not genuine. Moreover, they went round, each of the textile industry submitted their claims, and they went to the factory and inspected them and so many protocols. Also we have different cases in the Federal High Court for legal actions.
Q: So, was the N70billion realized after that exercise?
A: No, you journalist are funny if the money is realized then why are the textiles not working. We were hoping that by the time they finish that because they did that before last year May that the money would have been realized and by the time they have finished their investigation they went back to Abuja, we have been hearing different stories again, and nothing happened. We tried to have a workshop that we invited all the stakeholders, the customs, bank of industry etc and asked them what the situation about this money is, we have been that the N70billion is ready, where is the money. In addition, they told us all that the papers have prepared and they have presented it to the Office of the President and until now nothing has been done about it. We continued asking questions until February when we heard from the Minister of Finance and the Minister of state they said the money would be distributed by March, March has ended, we are now in April, and nobody is talking. These are the problems we are facing, the N70billion is no longer coming, no promises or hope is coming, and nobody knows where the textile industries are heading.
Q: How are the textile industries coping since the N70billion is no longer coming?
A: Some of the textile industries are putting up For Sale notice board in front of the textiles while some are selling of the textiles properties to pay the workers and that is very unfortunate. We are expecting the government to implement the N70billion, we need the government to come out to tell where is the N70Billion.
Q: We heard that some textile are reopening, how true is that?
A: That is a big fat lie and propaganda to deceive the people again, the truth about the textiles is that they are closed and they remain closed and nobody is saying or doing anything either the government or the stakeholders.
Q: Let us come back to the state level, what have the Kaduna state government done since infrastructure is part of the Eleven Points Agenda of Mr. Governor?
A: Well, His Excellency Arc. Namadi Sambo is the only one among the 19 state Northern Governors who visited the textile industry to k now the situation. When he came in he appointed a committee to go round Kaduna state and give him a brief history about the textile industries in Kaduna state and they did that and have made the reports of the state of the industries to the governor. However, unfortunately to Arc. Namadi Sambo, what can do, he is just a state governor out of the 36 state governors, he has been trying his possible best because he was with the NNPC, PHCN and even the President talking to them. He also joined the National Union of Textile & Garment Workers to talk to them because it is in his own state the problem is arising. That s why the Kaduna state government is building its own dam to grant power supply to the textile but the government is the central have harden its ears and refuse to listen and the issue of textile is Nationwide because if you go East, South, West and North the textile are closed down. The painful part of it is that the governors are not talking and no-body is doing anything, the issue of the governor s intervention nobody is willing but we appreciate that Kaduna state Governor Have really shown concern.
Q: We sew banners of HIV/AIDS programs organized by National Union of Textile & Garment Workers, why is NUTGW chasing HIV/AIDS instead of going after the N70Billion?
A: The Fact that the textiles are closed does not mean that we will not educate our members on HIV/AIDS, we do this every year to educate and enlighten the people about the virus. We are not running away from the workers or the textile, time to time we go and see them to know how they are doing and organized programs for them to make them still feel at home and show them some love.
Q: What is the latest move by National Union of Textile & Garment Workers and the fate of the workers?
A: To be sincere with you the latest move and the fate of the workers is the N70Billion that is not forthcoming which we all as concerned citizen of this country should come together and seek a way to put an end to this menace.
