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| ...Daniel Idajwo |
AT 17, Daniel Idajwo Achi moved down to Lagos to seek a living
after completing his secondary school at St. Joseph Secondary School,
Obi Local Government Benue State.
As a young boy, he believes Lagos is full of opportunities and he could get a good life there.
But some months after he got to Lagos,
misfortune befell him. A block-moulding machine chopped-off four of his fingers while working as a casual worker during the building of KES products Ltd, a new construction-engineering firm located at Area 5, off Bale side, Petedo Agabara-Ogun State.
Recalling how he started working for the company, he said, “I started working with the company around September 2010. My friend, Sabo Bednego, an operator there, introduced me to the company and I was employed to mould blocks for building.”
According to him, the accident that maimed him occurredwhile he was operating one of the machines. He explained: “It happened on December 7, 2010 while I was working. The machine used to develop fault at times but there was something like a key that we normally pressed for the cutting steel to be released. As I was pressing continuously, the cutting steel was released unexpectedly and chopped-off my left hands.”
Daniel was taken to Heken Hospital and Maternity Home at Badagry and the company’s representatives (Sabo Bednego and Sunday Ambrose, the supervisor) paid the N32, 000 hospital bill. There and then, Daniel said, the Doctor advised the firm to buy him an artificial finger before his discharge, but the firm didn’t do that.
Daniel, afterwards, went to meet the management and he was advised to decide on a business he could venture into and then return for financial aid.
“But ever since, they have been telling me ‘stories’,” Daniel lamented.
According to him, he spoke with the contractor whom he identified simply as Engineer Raphael, adding, “I later met the Managing Director, a woman, who used to visit the site every Sunday.” Daniel said she promised to do something about it promising to send the contractor to him. However, since then, Daniel laments, nothing has been done.
“They cannot leave me like this; I’ve got a business I wish to do.
“ I came to Lagos because there is nobody to fend for me. They promised to help me… but they have not up till now.”
However, in a telephone chat with The Guardian, the contractor, Raphael, reacted saying it was Daniel’s carelessness that landed him in such mess. According to him, Daniel was not supposed to go near the machine as he was employed as a block carrier.
“Daniel didn’t work under me and he was not an operator trained by me. The operator engaged him as a block carrier but he went and operated the machine while others were on break,” the contractor said.
Raphael added that Daniel had been warned not to operate the machine, noting that despite all this, the firm paid his hospital bill out of pity.
He added: “All we have done is based on sympathy; but he has been telling people erroneous statements. He was a casual worker under the operator and he violated his instruction. Now tell me, what is my fault?”
But Daniel denied this assertion, claiming that “there was no time we had break because once we powered the machine, work continues until we are ready to go home. We were only five of us and the machine is difficult to power. We resume 7am and close 6pm. We normally rotate our positions so as to relax and that day was not the first time I operated the machine. Other workers can testify to it,” he reacted.
Daniel is pleading with well-meaning Nigerians and the general public to appeal to the firm so that his case would not be another case of neglect because there is no chance for him to get employment anywhere due to his lack of four fingers.
“I want to live a good life and go places, but my condition is now a major hindrance. What do they want me to do with my life? I lost my fingers while working for them. If they cannot employ me as a staff, I should be compensated for me to pursue my desire in life,” Daniel pleaded.
Daniel can be contacted on: 08068294143
Source (http://www.ngrguardiannews.com)
Right or Wrong...Casual worker or Permanent worker...What can you say about this?
Share you thoughts..
As a young boy, he believes Lagos is full of opportunities and he could get a good life there.
But some months after he got to Lagos,
misfortune befell him. A block-moulding machine chopped-off four of his fingers while working as a casual worker during the building of KES products Ltd, a new construction-engineering firm located at Area 5, off Bale side, Petedo Agabara-Ogun State.
Recalling how he started working for the company, he said, “I started working with the company around September 2010. My friend, Sabo Bednego, an operator there, introduced me to the company and I was employed to mould blocks for building.”
According to him, the accident that maimed him occurredwhile he was operating one of the machines. He explained: “It happened on December 7, 2010 while I was working. The machine used to develop fault at times but there was something like a key that we normally pressed for the cutting steel to be released. As I was pressing continuously, the cutting steel was released unexpectedly and chopped-off my left hands.”
Daniel was taken to Heken Hospital and Maternity Home at Badagry and the company’s representatives (Sabo Bednego and Sunday Ambrose, the supervisor) paid the N32, 000 hospital bill. There and then, Daniel said, the Doctor advised the firm to buy him an artificial finger before his discharge, but the firm didn’t do that.
Daniel, afterwards, went to meet the management and he was advised to decide on a business he could venture into and then return for financial aid.
“But ever since, they have been telling me ‘stories’,” Daniel lamented.
According to him, he spoke with the contractor whom he identified simply as Engineer Raphael, adding, “I later met the Managing Director, a woman, who used to visit the site every Sunday.” Daniel said she promised to do something about it promising to send the contractor to him. However, since then, Daniel laments, nothing has been done.
“They cannot leave me like this; I’ve got a business I wish to do.
“ I came to Lagos because there is nobody to fend for me. They promised to help me… but they have not up till now.”
However, in a telephone chat with The Guardian, the contractor, Raphael, reacted saying it was Daniel’s carelessness that landed him in such mess. According to him, Daniel was not supposed to go near the machine as he was employed as a block carrier.
“Daniel didn’t work under me and he was not an operator trained by me. The operator engaged him as a block carrier but he went and operated the machine while others were on break,” the contractor said.
Raphael added that Daniel had been warned not to operate the machine, noting that despite all this, the firm paid his hospital bill out of pity.
He added: “All we have done is based on sympathy; but he has been telling people erroneous statements. He was a casual worker under the operator and he violated his instruction. Now tell me, what is my fault?”
But Daniel denied this assertion, claiming that “there was no time we had break because once we powered the machine, work continues until we are ready to go home. We were only five of us and the machine is difficult to power. We resume 7am and close 6pm. We normally rotate our positions so as to relax and that day was not the first time I operated the machine. Other workers can testify to it,” he reacted.
Daniel is pleading with well-meaning Nigerians and the general public to appeal to the firm so that his case would not be another case of neglect because there is no chance for him to get employment anywhere due to his lack of four fingers.
“I want to live a good life and go places, but my condition is now a major hindrance. What do they want me to do with my life? I lost my fingers while working for them. If they cannot employ me as a staff, I should be compensated for me to pursue my desire in life,” Daniel pleaded.
Daniel can be contacted on: 08068294143
Source (http://www.ngrguardiannews.com)
Right or Wrong...Casual worker or Permanent worker...What can you say about this?
Share you thoughts..
I advice David to go seek a very reputable humanright lawyer and at the end i hope he get justice.
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