TURA, Oct 6: Chief Executive Member of GHADC Albinush Marak has clarified that the delay in disbursement of salaries for two months was not related to any fund crunch but other “foreseen” circumstances and that all employees would be receiving their dues.

The CEM stated this on Friday after hundreds of council employees under the aegis of Non-Gazetted Employees Association announced a three day sit-in dharna from 10th of October outside the GHADC premises.

“I want to set the record straight that our EC had assured the employees that we would clear two months of pending salaries. The process has started and some have received their dues. But it was not possible to release all the money to all the council departments at one go because the GHADC Secretary got sick and the accountant was asked to go to Shillong to submit documents relating to council cases. Everyone will receive their salaries,” stated CEM Albinush Marak when queried by HUB NEWS as to what was the reason for the continued delay to pay all the employees.

The council employees have been angered with the council executive committee for what it says was a “broken promise” to pay a minimum of two months in September.

The CEM had told agitating employees on the 18th of last month that two months dues out of the pending 31 months would be cleared within that month itself.

Instead, only a handful of employees in the lower ranks of the GHADC have managed to receive their salaries after a long wait.

There are allegations that the GHADC had run short of cash to pay all the employees and was depending on its daily generation of revenue to pay small groups of staff each week.

“That is not true at all. We had promised to pay two months dues and we will ensure that. Our EC has been in power for 32 months but has never defaulted even once. In fact, despite being in power for the last 32 months, we have paid for 34 months, which includes two previous months dues. The records will prove it,” says the CEM.

The NGEA president in GHADC Brithen Sangma has said employees and their families are living in total poverty and unable to pay for food, school fees and running of households because of the non-payment of dues.

The GHADC requires almost Rs 4 Crores a month for disbursement of salaries under the old pay scale.

The CEM has criticised the leaders of the NGEA for blaming his EC for the ills of previous council administration.

“They are misleading the people with allegations that we have defaulted in payment of salaries. Our records are clean. We cleared 34 months of dues and will ensure the two months of salary promised reaches the staff. But why is the NGEA putting the blame on us? Why did they not agitate when previous ECs were accumulating one month after another of delayed payment?” asks CEM Albinush Marak.

But for the hungry and tired employees, the blame game is not something they are interested in, but timely disbursement of salaries entitled to them, irrespective of who sits in the chair.

Also read: NE’s Islamic NGOs, intellectuals form new forum to fight for Muslims rights, rituals and Sharia

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