Edo State workers, under the umbrella of Coalition of Unions of Edo State Owned Tertiary Institutions, on Wednesday disrupted activities at the Government House, protesting non- payment of their five months salaries and poor condition of service.

The protesters were drawn from College of Education, Ekiadolor, College of Education Igueben, Institute of Science and Technology, Usen, and College of Agriculture, Iguoriakhi.

The angry workers in large numbers who dressed in black attire equally demanded for immediate payment of 16 months salary arrears said to have been approved between July 2009 and October 2010.

The aggrieved workers also protested unpaid promotion arrears, stoppage of use of Trust Fund/ Cooperative monies for the running of the institutions, dilapidated infrastructures and non- provision of funds for immediate accreditation of courses.

President of the Coalition of unions in the Institutions, Fred Omonuwa, said they met several times with the state government, through the commissioner of education over the issues, adding that the workers can no longer bear the situation.

He criticised the decision of the state government to recourse to selective treatment by choosing to pay their counterparts in Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma regular monthly pension and gratuities and increasing the institution’s subvention while neglecting others.

The workers took the protest to Government House, where they were received by the Head of Service, Igbaeremen Obazele, behalf of governor Adams Oshiomhole.

Obazele said government had since constituted a team headed by Peter Obadan, a former deputy governor, to look at the issues raised and attributed the delay to the inability of the management of three out of the four institutions to make available the needed information.