The Organised Labour has called on workers of the Power Company of Nigeria (PHCN) to ignore statement credited to the Minister of Power, Professor Barth Nnaji, directing workers to demand from union leaders the whereabouts of their missing pension fund under the superannuation fund, saying it is a cheap blackmail and mischievous.

The National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), in a statement, argued that the minister's statement on Sunday, through one of his media aides, was another fabrication aimed at discrediting the unions for demanding that severance packages payable to PHCN workers should be based on the contract of service entered into with the PHCN management.

NUEE's statement, which was signed by its General Secretary, Comrade Joe Ajaero, reiterated its earlier demand that the probe panel set up by the Prof Nnaji to probe the missing pension fund be conducted in public.

The statement read: "We make bold to state that the statement is mischievous and made to distract the attention of PHCN staff and Nigerians on how government agents mismanaged PHCN superannuation funds. It is another fabrication aimed at discrediting the unions for demanding that exit packages payable to PHCN workers should be based on the contract of service entered into with the PHCN Management.

"We are not moved by this campaign of calumny as it cannot distract us from fighting for the inalienable rights of our members."