Christopher Jator Njechu and Victorine Biy
8 August 2008
Some 300 workers of the sugar company, known by its French acronym as SOSUCAM, would loose their jobs following plans to restructure the outfit, The Post has learnt.
The move by the company has been greeted with protests by the workers who observed a sit-in strike Tuesday, August 5, at the company's headquarters in Mbandjock and Nkoteng, of the Centre Province.
The striking workers blocked the entrance to the SOSUCAM head office in Nkoteng, in protest at the company's recent decision to cut back on its workforce and reduce by 10 percent the workers' salaries.
The workers, who are demanding salary increases, ban on sugar importation and the award of labour medals which they claimed management had for sometime now neglected, were received by Labour and Social Security Minister, Robert Nkili, in a crisis resolution meeting on August 5.
During the meeting, the Managing Director of SOSUCAM, Louis Yinda, stated that the measures they intend to take falls within the recommendation of CEMAC.The Post learnt that CEMAC had called for the rehabilitation of the company following skyrocketing food and fuel prices.
He said despite the workers complaints about the retrenchment process that is underway; he was just being considerate given that CEMAC recommends a drastic reduction in his company's staff.
Speaking during the crisis resolution meeting, the representative of SOSUCAM workers, Ibrahim Njoya, lamented the decision to merge SOSUCAM with CAMSUCO. He stressed that the merge is diametrically opposite to the aspiration of the employees. To him, both SOSUCAM and CAMSUCO with a manpower of about 3.000 permanent and 4.000 temporary workers would cause pain to so many families, especially their children and wives whose lives depend on them.
The workers' representatives said the move is illogical. They said reducing their meagre salaries was contradictory to popular expectation considering the escalation of sugar prices on the market and recent salary increase of State personnel, free medical treatment for temporary workers in some sectors of the country and the recent boost in minimum wage package.
On the 10 percent salary slash, the Managing Director, in what he called government's deliberate failure to grant subsidies to the outfit, lamented government's financial aid to certain structures for the importation of sugar at the detriment of the local industry.
It is within this backdrop that the Director General of Customs, Minette Likeng, indicted Import Commodities, IC, which government has continued to pomp in subvention for "killing" local industries. According to her, if SOSUCAM workers are complaining of poor working conditions, arbitrary and illegal retrenchment, the Douala-based IC should take the blame.
The Post has learnt that contraband sugars are ferried into the country through the Douala Sea Port.The crux of it all, an official in the Ministry of Finance said, is her Ministry's authorisation for the importation of sugar in 2007. She said the decision was meant for application in 2007 and not the current fiscal year.
Meanwhile, it was also made known that the outfit produces some 120,000 tons of sugar yearly. It was disclosed that 36.000 tons are in stock still in need of finance to its marketing. The Managing Director also used the occasion to refute claims that some 20,000 tons of sugar produced in Congo are exported to Cameroon by Brazil.
Nonetheless, it was resolved that the labour medals due to SOSUCAM workers would be awarded come on September 5. A tripartite committee would also be set up in the near future to examine grievances of the workers and the situation of the company, and make recommendations to the Ministry of Labour and Social Security.
Also, the merging of SOSUCAM and CAMSUCO was stamped out. The workers and the Union des Syndicats Confedere du Cameroun, USCC, accepted to call off the strike action and return to work. In the light of the downing financial capacity of the company, the Minister pledged to undertake a visit to the outfit next on August 12, to get the situation on the ground promising improved government subvention in the days ahead.
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