AT least 13,300 dockworkers will soon be relieved of their duties as part of government's efforts to handover the nation's seaports to private operators.

Already, the Federal Government has set aside N2.6 billion as severance package for those to be affected.

Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Chief Adebayo Sarumi who briefed newsmen yesterday said each sacked worker would go home with N200,000 .

Chief Sarumi who disclosed this on behalf of the Presidential Task Force on Port Reforms, said government and the labour unions were already working out modalities for implementing the severance package.

He said after several negotiations with the unions, government which initially earmarked N500 million for the exercise raised the amount to N2.6 billion.

The government's gesture to the dockworkers, he nonetheless added was unprecedented in the history of concession.

He said the severance package would settle the problems of dockworkers, adding that it will be made across board irrespective of who would be retained by the new operators.

Chief Sarumi however noted that there would be verification before payment to stave off the incidence of fraud in the payroll.

He further disclosed that the N200,000 severance package was the demand of the unions dismissing fears that the workers would reject the money.

Insisting that the country needed the port reform, Chief Sarumi said the development in the telecommunication as industry remained an eye opener to critics of the concessioning.

He recalled that government carried out enough negotiation with the unions before it finally agreed to hand over the ports to private operators.

The NPA boss who said the severance package generated controversy, declared however that government was constrained to pay the workers because they were Nigerians who should not be left to suffer.