Real Reasons Atiku’s Broadcasting Firm Sacked Over 50 Staff

About 51 Staff of Gotel Communications, an Adamawa State-based radio and television service owned by a former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, have been sacked.

The sacked workers, who are mostly contract staffers of the local TV and radio stations, were laid off owing to an ongoing rationalisation policy of the company now under a new management.

But one of the affected workers, who confirmed to PREMIUM TIMES, a leading online newspaper, that he was among those sacked, said no clear reason was given by the management for their sack.

He, however, said the action might probably linked to the recent merger of all the businesses owned by the wealthy opposition politician.

It was learnt that Atiku had last year merged all his businesses into a single group known as Priam Group.

A source explained that Priam Group was mandated to bring all Atiku’s investments under one brand and one common management.

The Group was also expected to take over assets and liabilities of the existing companies including staff emoluments and other welfare.

The source further told the online newspaper that said since the merger, which included Gotel Communications, some Indian expatriates were brought in to take over the management.

“Perhaps it was part of their business strategy to reduce the workforce. Whatever it is all about, it is unheard of to have a big media outfit without any single permanent staffer,” the source added.

Gotel Communications had in 2016 carried out a mass retrenchment after which it placed others on renewable contracts and those retained were later made to sign a five-year contract with Gotel.

However, this week, some of those staff were among Gotel Communications’ workers axed.

According to the source, “the sack came halfway into the five-year contract engagement they signed with Gotel Communication. The sacked workers were in the middle of executing the five-year contract when the management decided to shift the post in the middle of the game.

“Suddenly we were served letters terminating our appointments with an instruction that we return every property that belongs to the company while leaving, and that our entitlements, including payments due to us in lieu of the sack notice would be computed and paid into our accounts.”

The sack letter, issued to the workers, was signed by Mr. Muhammed Elyakub, the General Manager of Gotel TV and Radio.

In his reaction to the reports when contacted, Elyakub confirmed that the mass sack was as a result of an ongoing ‘rationalisation policy’ of the company under the new management.

Elyakub said all the former vice president’s businesses are now under the Priam Group, and it is the new policy thrust of the management to shelve the workforce.

“The rationalisation of staff at Gotel Communications Limited, a company under the umbrella of Priam Group, is a culmination of the restructuring process in the companies under our Group,” he said.

Elyakub added; “The founder of companies under the Priam had announced that many of his business concerns will be aggregated under the Priam Group. Priam Group had embarked on a restructuring exercise which led to a merger of many companies under its umbrella.

“Other components of the restructuring include rationalisation of the workforce and thus some members of staff of the group would be laid off, with their full disengagement benefits paid to them. It is also not unexpected that a restructuring procedure of this size and nature would come with some likely job rationalisation especially since each of these entities has its own finance, admin, marketing, HR and ancillary support operations which would now be consolidated and undertaken at the group level.

“It should, however, be noted that the current decision to right-size the workforce in Gotel Communication Limited is the climax of the on-going restructuring exercise which was initiated last year. It will, therefore, be out of context to ascribe any mundane presupposition for being responsible for the decision to lay off some of the workforces in Gotel Communication Limited.

“Following the unveiling of Priam Group last year, Atiku Abubakar ceased to be involved in the running of the affairs of his companies. The decisions are taken so far, and especially as it relates to the rationalisation of staff, is solely a management decision.

“It needs to be restated that we shall, as a responsible organisation, discharge every obligation to the laid-off staff and any other staff that may be involved in the rationalisation exercise of any of the companies under the Priam Group.”

Paul Ibe, Media Adviser to the former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar had also said in a statement in December 24, 2019 unveiling the Priam Group that owing to the restructuring exercise and merger of companies, some personnel may have to be disengaged.

Atiku was the presidential candidate of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last general elections.